Closeness Interactions Scale Estonian version (CIS-Est) development Phase 1

Abstract

Humans have a basic need to experience social and physical connections, but in our increasingly technology-focused and socially disconnected world, these connections grow more distant. Even though research implies that social connectedness and physical touch are very important for physical and mental health, there are very few psychometric tools that measure closeness satisfaction and the amount of different expressions of closeness. The aim of the present research was to develop items for a comprehensive and psychometrically valid interaction-based closeness scale - Closeness Interactions Scale (CIS). Item generation phase (N = 48) yielded a 114 item scale which was then reduced to a 32-item preliminary closeness scale in item reduction phase (N = 320). The 32-item scale measured 9 dimensions and demonstrated good internal consistency for both the overall scale (α = 0.89) and for each of the 9 subscales. The scale will measure closeness satisfaction in behaviour-related interactions and activities and quantifies both their amount and subjective importance. Preliminary results confirm the subjective and multidimensional structure of closeness, but need to be validated in the next phases of scale construction.