Further validation of the Client Assessment of Strengths Interests and Goals

Abstract 

The Client Assessment of Strengths Interests and Goals (CASIG), a measure that assesses the treatment outcomes of individuals with serious and persistent mental illness, has previously shown adequate psychometric properties with an American sample. Since it assesses quite specific skills and needs, it is necessary to assess its cultural relevance and psychometric characteristics before using it in a different country. Hence, the purposes of this study were to (1) adapt CASIG to the culture of a Canadian setting and translate its items and directions into French, (2) determine the psychometric characteristics of the adapted English and French versions of CASIG, and (3) identify its latent constructs via an exploratory factor analysis.

The CASIG self-report (CASIG-SR) measure was administered to 224 consumers living in the community, and the CASIG informant (CASIG-I) measure to 31 clinicians answering for 172 consumers. The participating consumers also completed the Behavior and Symptom Identification Scale-32 (BASIS-32), the Short Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36), and the Camberwell Assessment of Needs (CAN). The informants also completed the clinician version of the CAN.

The CASIG-SR and the CASIG-I had adequate internal consistency, test–retest, and interrater reliabilities. Correlations of the consumers' and informants' results with the BASIS-32, SF-36, and CAN provided evidence of convergent and discriminant validity, as did contrasts between higher and lower functioning community consumers. The factor analysis also supports the construct validity of the assessment. The results confirm the psychometric adequacy of the adapted and translated CASIG in Canada.

Keywords:  Functional assessment, Treatment planning, Serious mental illness