Validation of the Perceived Empathic and Social Self-Efficacy Scale: A Brief Report

Abstract

Perceived empathic and social self-efficacy are required to strengthen interpersonal relationships and receive social support, which are crucial for community participation, employment, and job retention of people with disabilities. This study investigated the factor structure and related psychometric properties of an instrument used to measure these two constructs among people with disabilities. Results confirmed the two-factor measurement structure, the Perceived Empathic Self-Efficacy and the Perceived Social Self-Efficacy factors. This scale can be used by rehabilitation professionals to assess vocational rehabilitation (VR) consumers’ perceived levels of empathic and social self-efficacy. It can also be used by researchers as an outcome measure to evaluate the effectiveness of social skills training interventions for VR consumers.