Degree Name
MA (Master of Arts)
Program
Psychology
Date of Award
12-2013
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
Chris Dula
Committee Members
Chris Dula, Ginni Blackhart, William Dalton III
Abstract
Geller’s Actively Caring Survey (ACS) was theorized to measure person states deemed necessary to “Actively Care” or act altruistically toward others. Empirical research of the ACS has been limited, and this researcher sought to evaluate its reliability, validity, and factorial consistency. Undergraduate students (n = 1,095) completed the measure online. Hypotheses were partially supported. Unrotated primary component analysis found the ACS to be a unitary measure with 73.3% of the items loading onto the first factor. The ACS showed excellent internal consistency. Convergent and divergent validity with existing measures (i.e., the Big 5 Personality, Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability, Cognitive Failures Questionnaire, Barratt Impulsiveness, and Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Venturesomeness scales) was found in 88.9% of the predicted relationships; the ACS was negatively correlated with social desirability. An abbreviated ACS revision produced similar findings. Future studies should evaluate the measure in nonstudent populations, use clinical and industrial settings, and explore predictive validity.
Document Type
Thesis - unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Randall, Philip, "Actively Caring About the Actively Caring Survey: Evaluating the Reliability and Validity of a Measure of Dispositional Altruism" (2013). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 2275. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2275
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.
Included in
Applied Behavior Analysis Commons, Clinical Psychology Commons, Community Psychology Commons, Industrial and Organizational Psychology Commons, Social Psychology Commons