Temporal Stability of Strength-Based Assessments

Abstract

This study focused on evaluating the temporal stability of self-reported and teacher-reported perceptions of students’ social and emotional skills and assets. We used a test–retest reliability procedure over repeated administrations of the child, adolescent, and teacher versions of the Social-Emotional Assets and Resilience Scales. Middle school students in Grades 6 through 8 reliably self-reported on their social and emotional competencies. In a similar vein, teacher ratings of students in Grades K through 5 also showed strong temporal stability. Although all samples and versions of this scale demonstrated temporal stability, multiple administrations of the child self-report version of the SEARS showed evidence of the mean score of the initial administration being significantly lower than what was obtained on later administrations. Implications for further research and development efforts are discussed.