THE COGNITION RATING FORM - A NEW APPROACH TO ASSESSING SELF-GENERATED COGNITIONS IN ADOLESCENT SENTENCE COMPLETIONS

The Cognition Rating Form (CRF), a new scoring measure for the Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank, was evaluated using adolescent psychiatric inpatients (n = 56) and high school controls(n = 102). The CRF displa yed adequate interrater agreement and internal consistency. Factor ana lysis revealed four CRF factors. One factor, Negative Cognitions, disc riminated between inpatient and high school groups. The CRF also demon strated concurrent validity with measures of depression, hopelessness, self-esteem, and depressive-anxious thoughts. Furthermore, when compa red to measures of depression, hopelessness, and self-esteem, the CRF demonstrated higher sensitivity rates in predicting the two originally defined groups and suicide ideators versus nonideators. Thus, the CRF shows promise as a thought sampling scoring measure.