Reliability and Validity of the Lichtenberg Financial Decision Screening Scale

• NCJ Number: 255258
• Journal: Innovation in Aging Volume: 1 Issue: 1 Dated: 2017
• Author(s): Peter A. Lichtenberg; Jeanne A. Teresi; Katja; Katja Ocepek-Welikson; Joseph P. Eimicke
• Date Published: 2017
• Length: 10 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2014-MU-CX-0001
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description
• Award: Integrating Improved Assessments of Financial Judgment: Conceptual and Measurement Advances

Annotation

Using a sample of 213 participants, this study investigated the internal consistency of the Lichtenberg Financial Decision Screening Scale (LFDSS), a new tool for assessing financial decisionmaking and preventing financial exploitation, and its criterion validity based on ratings by professionals using the scale.

Abstract

Using a sample of 213 participants, this study investigated the internal consistency of the Lichtenberg Financial Decision Screening Scale (LFDSS), a new tool for assessing financial decisionmaking and preventing financial exploitation, and its criterion validity based on ratings by professionals using the scale. ABST The scarcity of empirically validated assessment instruments continues to impede the work of professionals in a number of fields, including medicine, finance, and estate planning; adult protective services; and criminal justiceand, more importantly, it impedes their ability to effectively assist and, in some cases, protect their clients. Other professionals (e.g., legal, financial, medical, mental health services) are in a position to prevent financial exploitation and would benefit from access to new instruments. The Lichtenberg Financial Decision Screening Scale (LFDSS) was introduced in 2016, along with evidence for its convergent validity (Lichtenberg, P. A., Fickern, L., Rahman-Filipiak, A., Tatro, R., Farrell, C., Speir, J. J., ... Jackman, J. D. (2016b)). Results of the current evaluation demonstrate that the LFDSS has excellent internal consistency and clinical utility properties. This assessment supports the use of the LFDSS as a reliable and valid instrument. The LFDSS and instructions for its use are included in the article, along with information about online tools and support. 5 tables, 3 figures, and 21 references (publisher abstract modified)