PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES OF 2 INSTRUMENTS TO MEASURE QUALITY DECISION-MAKING

The results of testing two instruments for consequential decision maki ng are reported: a screening instrument, the Decision Making Quality S cale (DMQS), which assesses the degree to which a person adheres to se ven quality criteria of decision making; and a diagnostic measure, the Decision Making Quality Inventory (DMQI), which assesses an individua l's dominant decision-making style through six sequential stages of th e process. The instruments are conceptually linked through the same th eoretical framework, the Janis and Mann (1977) conflict model of decis ion making, as well as operationally linked as counterpart instruments . Feasibility of the instruments was demonstrated with low readability indexes, reasonable administration times, and respondent acceptabilit y by six samples (N = 766). Content validity was supported by panels o f experts in decision theory. Reliability coefficients were consistent ly high (>.70) for all samples. Support for construct validity was obt ained using the contrasted groups approach and relationship testing. T he instruments are ready for research and clinical use with healthy ad olescents and their parents, as well as with adolescents and young adu lts who have experienced a chronic illness such as cancer and with the ir parents. (C) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.