Scale Overview
The Adolescent Perceived Costs and Benefits Scale for Sexual Intercourse was developed by Stephen A. Small, S. B. Silverberg, & D. Kerns (1993). It is designed to measure Perceived costs and benefits of sexual intercourse. The scale is intended for use with Adolescents.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 20 items organized into 2 factors/subscales: Perceived Costs, Perceived Benefits.
| Factor / Subscale |
Items |
N |
| Perceived Costs |
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 |
10 |
| Perceived Benefits |
11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20 |
10 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 0 = Strongly Disagree, 1 = Disagree, 2 = Agree, 3 = Strongly Agree.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 0 to 30. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low perceived costs/benefits: 0 – 10
- Moderate perceived costs/benefits: 11 – 20
- High perceived costs/benefits: 21 – 30
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of .86 for both subscales.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 8 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.