Scale Overview
The Community Support – Chicago Youth Development Study (CYDS) was developed by Patrick H. Tolan, Deborah Gorman-Smith, & David B. Henry (2001). It is designed to measure Neighborhood engagement and community support. The scale is intended for use with Youth and adolescents.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 4 items.
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: Items 1-2: 1 = Strongly agree, Items 1-2: 2 = Agree, Items 1-2: 3 = Neither, Items 1-2: 4 = Disagree, Items 1-2: 5 = Strongly disagree, Items 3-4: 1 = True, Items 3-4: 2 = False.
The scale includes 2 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Item scores are averaged to produce a mean score.
Total scores range from 1 to 4. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low neighborhood engagement: 1 – 2
- Moderate neighborhood engagement: 2 – 3
- High neighborhood engagement: 3 – 4
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Not specified.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 2 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.