Development and Initial Psychometric Properties of the Integrated Care Competency Scale for Counselors

Abstract

This study provides the development phases and initial psychometric evaluation of the Integrated Care Competency Scale (ICCS) with sample ( n = 243). Specifically, quantitative methods with graduate counseling students were used in this study. The ICCS through a three-phase study process was honed to 65 items and broadly assesses graduate counseling students’ perceived competencies in integrated care. Phase 1 reports on item generation and issues related to content validity, Phase 2 describes the results of a pilot study and preliminary psychometric properties, and Phase 3 discusses the exploratory factor analysis, and further psychometric properties conducted to assess the usefulness and reliability of the ICCS items. Results from the three-phase study process revealed satisfactory reliability, factor structure, and usefulness of the newly constructed ICCS in measuring integrated care competencies. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the overall scale was .98. Discussion, limitation, and implications for future research are presented.