Content area
Full text
Private self-consciousness and the subordinate constructs of self-reflection and insight are key factors in the self-regulatory process underpinning the creation of behavior change, both in clinical practice with clinical populations, and in performance enhancing coaching with nonclinical populations. This paper reports the construction and validation of the SelfReflection and Insight Scale (SRIS) which is designed to be an advance on the Private Self-- Consciousnes Scale (PrSCS; Fenigstein, Scheier, & Buss, 1975). Previous work has found the PrSCS to comprise two factors, self-reflection and internal state awareness. In a series of studies two separate factor analyses found the SRIS comprised two separate factors labeled Self-Reflection (SRIS-SR) and Insight (SRIS-IN). "Need for self-reflection" and "engagement in self-reflection" loaded on the same factor. Test-retest reliability over a 7-week period was .77 (SRIS-SR) and .78 (SRIS-IN). The PrSCS correlated positively with the SRIS-SR and negatively with the SRIS-IN. The SRIS-SR correlated positively with anxiety and stress, but not with depression and alexithymia. The SRIS-IN was negatively correlated with depression, anxiety, stress and alexithymia, and positively correlated with cognitive flexibility and self-regulation. Individuals who had kept diaries had higher SRIS-SR scores but lower SRIS-- IN scores than did those who had not kept diaries. Implications of these findings for models of self-regulation and goal attainment are discussed.
Keywords: self-reflection, insight, private self-consciousness, coaching, psychological mindedness
This paper reports on the development and validation of a new measure of private self-consciousness: the Self-Reflection and Insight Scale (SRIS). SelfReflection, the inspection and evaluation of one's thoughts, feelings and behavior and insight, the clarity of understanding of one's thoughts, feelings and behavior, are metacognitive factors central to the process of purposeful, directed change (Carver & Scheier, 1998). Purposeful progress through the cycle of selfregulation towards a specific goal rests on an individual's being able to monitor and evaluate his/her progress and use such feedback to improve his/her performance (Figure 1).
The development of reliable measures of self-reflection and insight would provide researchers and practitioners with the means to assess metacognitive processes such as psychological mindedness, self-reflection and insight and enhance our understanding of their roles in purposeful behavior change (Grant, 2001).
To date, such measurement has often been conducted using the Private SelfConsciousness Scale (PrSCS; Fenigstein, Scheier, & Buss, 1975). The...