''Empowerment'' connotes a process of gaining control over one's life
and influencing the organizational and societal structures in which on
e lives. This study defines and validates three measures: the Personal
Empowerment Scale, the Organizational Empowerment Scale, and the Extr
a-Organizational Empowerment Scale. Measurement efforts are based on o
bservational work, baseline interviews (N = 310), and six month follow
-ups (N = 241) in four client-run self-help agencies (SHAs) for person
s with severe mental disabilities. All three study scales demonstrated
strong internal consistency and stability. They were sensitive to use
r changes over time and have construct validity.1