Reliability and validity assessments of measures of social networks,social support and control — results from the Malmö Shoulder and Neck Study

Abstract

The reliability and validity of methods to assess social networks, social support and control were investigated in a population of 12,009 females and males born between 1926 and 1945 (the “Malmö Shoulder and Neck Study”). This study demonstrated an overall reliability with kappa coefficients between 0.70 and 0.47, but the reliability was more varying among females and lower in the youngest age group. The analysis of the construct validity indicated that the different indices measure different aspects of the psychosocial environment, but both theoretical and methodological problems were identified, when the validity of multidimensional concepts are to be determined. The validity of such indices can best be judged by combining quantitative and qualitative methods. Potential validity problems must be kept in mind when these indices are used in epidemiological research. The results from the reliability analysis call for repeated assessments and the sample size must be adjusted vis-à-vis the reliability.

Keywords

social epidemiology psychosocial factors social support reliability validity

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Hanson B , Östergren P-O. Different social network and social support characteristics, nervous problems and insomnia — Theoretical and methodological aspects on some results from the population study “Men born in 1914”, Malmö, Sweden . Soc Sci Med 1987; 25: 841–59.

Hanson B. Social network, social support and health in elderly men — A population study. Lund: Studentlitteratur; 1988. (Thesis).

Hanson B , Isacsson S-O , Janzon L , Lindell S-E. Social support and quitting smoking for good. Is there an association? — Results from the population study “Men born in 1914”, Malmö, Sweden . Addict Behav 1990; 15: 221–33.

Hanson B , Isacsson S-O , Janzon L , Lindell S-E , Råstam L. Social anchorage and blood pressure in elderly men — A population study . J Hypertens 1988; 6: 503–10.

Hanson B , Mattisson I , Steen B. Dietary intake and psychosocial factors in 68-year old men. A population study . Compr Gerontol 1987; 1: 62–7.

Hanson B , Isacsson S-O. Social network, social support and regular leisure-time physical activity in elderly men. — A population study of men born in 1914, Malmö, Sweden . Eur J Publ Health 1992; 2: 16–23.

Hanson B. Social network, social support and heavy drinking in elderly men. — A population study of men born in 1914, Malmö, Sweden . Addiction 1994; 89: 725–32.

Hedblad B , Östergren P-O , Hanson BS , Janzon L. Influence of social support on cardiac event rate in men with ischemic type ST-segment depression during ambulatory 24 hr long-term ECG recording. The prospective population study “Men born in 1914”, Malmö, Sweden . European Heart Journal 1992; 13: 433–9.

Hanson B , Isacsson S-O , Janzon L , Lindell S-E. Social network and social support influence mortality in elderly men. — The prospective population study of “Men born in 1914”, Malmö, Sweden . Am J Epidemiol 1989; 130: 100–11.

10.

Falk A , Hanson BS , Östergren P-O. Job strain and mortality in elderly men: Social network, support, and influence as buffers. A population study of men born in 1914, Malmö, Sweden . AJPH 1992; 82: 1136–9.

11.

Syme L. Control and health: a personal perspective. In: Steptoe A , Appels A , editors. Stress, personal control and health. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons 1989; p. 3–18.

12.

Cohen S , Williamson GM. Perceived Stress in a Probability Sample. In: Spacapan S , Oskamp S , editors. The Social Psychology of Health. Beverly Hills: SAGE Publications; 1988.

13.

Berglund G , Elmst-å-Ehl S , Janzon L , Larsson SA. Malmö Diet and Cancer Study. Design and feasibility . J Internal Med 1993; 233: 45–51.

14.

Streiner D , Norman GF. Health measurement scales. New York: Oxford University Press; 1989.

15.

Rothman K. Modern epidemiology. Boston/Toronto: Little, Brown and Company; 1986.

16.

Dean K (ed.). Population health research. Linking theory and methods. London: Sage; 1993.

17.

McDowell I , Newell C. Measuring health. A guide to rating scales and questionaires. Oxford University Press ; 1987.

18.

Swedish National Central Bureau of Statistics . Swedish socioeconomic classification. Stockholm: Swedish National Central Bureau of Statistics, 1982. (Reports on statistical coordination 1982: 4). (In Swedish).

19.

Landis J , Koch GG. The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data . Biometrics 1977; 33: 159–74.

20.

Wickman A , Warneryd B. Measurement errors in survey questions: Explaining response variability . Social Indicators research 1990; 22: 199–212.

21.

Stansfeld S , Marmot M. Deriving a survey measure of social support: The reliability and validity of the close persons questionnaire . Soc Sci Med 1992; 35: 1027–35.

22.

Östergren P-O , Lindbladh E , Isacsson S-O , Odeberg H , Svensson SE. Social Network, Social Support and the Concept of Control — a Qualitative Study Concerining the Validity of Certain Stressor Measures Used in Quantitative Social Epidemiology . Scand J Soc Med 1995; 2: 95–102.

23.

Cohen S , Skerrod DR , Clark MS. Social skills and the stress protective role of social support . J Pers Soc Psychol 1986; 150: 963–73.

24.

Dean K , Hoist E , Kreiner S , Schoenborn C , Wilson R. Measurement issues in research on social support and health . J Epidemiol Community Health 1994; 48:201–6.