THE MEASURE OF ADOLESCENT SOCIAL PERFORMANCE - DEVELOPMENT AND INITIAL VALIDATION

Examined initial psychometric data on the Measure of Adolescent Social Performance (MASP), a newly developed, 50-item, self-report scale. Scale construction followed Goldfried and D'Zurilla's (1969) behavioral-analytic model Two separate validation.studies were conducted. In Study 1, demographic variables, teacher estimates of peer acceptance, and self-ratings of parent-adolescent communication served as criterion variables. Study 2 evaluated MASP scores against teacher ratings of social behavior and self-ratings of competence and friendship quality. Performance on the MASP was significantly related to both self- and teacher ratings of behavioral conduct and scholastic competence, as well as self-ratings of global self-worth, friendship quality, and communication with parents. MASP scores were not related to self- and teacher estimates of social acceptance, however, suggesting factors other than social performance are more closely associated with adolescent popularity.