Development of the Multidimensional Hope Scale

Abstract

In this psychometric study, a scale to measure hope in chronically ill patients was developed and evaluated. Four hundred fifty participants with a variety of chronic diagnoses completed two forms of the Multidimensional Hope Scale (MHS) (state and trait) and the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS). High levels of internal consistency (alpha = .95) and test-retest reliability (r = .82, p < .001) were estimated for the state form. Good concurrent validity was also indicated with a significant negative correlation between the MHS and the BHS (r = -.45, p < .001). Factor analysis using principal axis factoring and oblimin rotation identified six factors: Resource to Others, Civic Interest, Spirituality, Health, Social Support, and Self-Actualization. The psychometric data suggest a promising tool for measuring hopefulness in physically ill individuals.