Development of a new measure for assessing insight: Psychometric properties of the insight orientation scale (IOS)

INTRODUCTION: Given the centrality of insight in promoting change, the relevance of measures for assessing this construct has become increasingly clear. This paper describes a new self-report measure for assessing some of the characteristics of insight, the insight orientation scale (IOS). AIMS: In study 1, we evaluated the factor structure and the reliability of the scale. In study 2, we analyzed the concurrent and discriminant validity of the scale in patients with different clinical diagnoses. METHODS: In study 1 participants were 600 individuals (41.1% male, 58.9% female) with a mean age of 33.95 years (SD = 13.04). In study 2 participants were 136 individuals divided into the following groups: 1) schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders (n = 26); 2) substance-related disorders (n = 55); 3) depressive disorders (n = 27); and 4) personality disorders (n = 28). INSTRUMENTS: Instruments are the insight orientation scale (IOS) and the Beck cognitive insight scale. RESULTS: The goodness-of-fit indices showed a satisfactory fit of a one factor model. We found also a good internal consistency (α = .77). CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the dimensionality of the IOS and suggest that it may be useful as an assessment tool for use in guiding psychotherapy.