Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Jul;102(7):1389-1396.
doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2019.02.026. Epub 2019 Mar 2.

Development of a measure of collective efficacy within personal networks: A complement to self-efficacy in self-management support?

Rebecca Band  1 , Elizabeth James  2 , David Culliford  3 , Borislav Dimitrov  4 , Anne Kennedy  5 , Anne Rogers  6 , Ivaylo Vassilev  7
Affiliations
Free article

Development of a measure of collective efficacy within personal networks: A complement to self-efficacy in self-management support?

Rebecca Band et al. Patient Educ Couns. 2019 Jul.
Free article

Abstract

Objective: To develop and evaluate the Collective Efficacy of Networks (CENS) questionnaire to measure perceived collective efficacy within personal social networks.

Methods: A mixed methods approach was used, guided by theory and with extensive input from adults with long-term conditions who completed the initial questionnaire (n = 78) with test-retest assessed at 2 weeks (n = 68). A second sample (n = 85) completed a postal questionnaire including CENS, theoretically linked constructs (self-efficacy, social support) and health outcomes (loneliness, mental and physical health).

Results: Principal components analysis demonstrated a two-factor structure with 12-items selected to represent Network responsiveness (8 items, Cronbach's alpha = 0.896) and Access to collective efficacy (4 items, Cronbach's alpha = .773). Good test-retest reliability was established for both subscales (ricc = .793-.853). Network responsiveness was associated with self-efficacy (r = 342, p = . < 001) and social support (r = .407, p < .001) and predicted reduced loneliness. Access to collective efficacy significantly predicted better mental health; the predictive validity of the subscales improved when combined with self-efficacy.

Conclusion: The CENS is an acceptable and psychometrically robust measure of collective efficacy in personal social networks.

Practice implications: Measuring collective efficacy with self-efficacy will provide useful information for researchers and policymakers interested in capacity for self-management and social determinants of behaviour change.

Keywords: Assessment; Collective efficacy; Personal communities; Psychometric evaluation; Social networks.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources