Attitudes towards prisoners who self harm scale: a psychometric evaluation

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to report on the internal consistency, convergent validity and test-retest reliability of the Attitudes to Prisoners who Self-Harm scale (APSH). The latter have yet to be examined. Design/methodology/approach - Participants were prison staff with prisoner contact (N = 97). Internal consistency of the APSH was examined using Cronbach's a. Convergent validity of the APSH was examined by comparing it to the Self-Harm Antipathy Scale, a reliable and valid measure of healthcare staff attitudes to self-harm. Test-retest reliability was examined by re-administering the APSH one week after initial assessment (n = 75). Findings - The measure demonstrated adequate levels of internal consistency, convergent validity and test-retest reliability. Originality/value - The findings support use of the APSH within custodial settings. It could be used to guide recruitment and training of prison officers that care for prisoners who self-harm and to evaluate the efficacy of their training. This would influence good practice.