Validity and Reliability of Self-Love Measurement Tool: A Pilot Study among College Students in Malaysia

Self-love is a crucial instrument that facilitates the transformation of mental status from negative to positive thinking, ultimately resulting in constructive behaviours, practices, and actions in life. However, existing gaps in literature fails to address the practical application of self-love and its measurement in a real-world setting. Therefore, this study aims to develop a valid and reliable self-love measurement tool. A pilot study was conducted involving 35 participants from a local institution in Malaysia as part of a cross-sectional survey. The 10-items self-love questionnaire is based on daily living situation that triggers deep emotional and mental thoughts that may impact an individual, and was scored on a 4-point Likert scale for its relevance, clarity, simplicity, and ambiguity. Construct validity showed that items 1, 3, 4, 7, and 8 exhibited strong correlation (r = 0.7 - 0.89), items 2, 5, 6, and 9 showed moderate correlation (0.5 - 0.69), and item 10 was the only one with low correlation (r = 0.26 - 0.49). The study findings also revealed that the items presented values higher than 0.7 (0.798 - 0.835) and indicated good reliability. The tool was designed to assess self-love, emotional thinking patterns, and coping strategies during stress or goal-related challenges, using a 5-point Likert scale from “very difficult” to “very easy”, with higher scores indicating positive appraisal. Pilot results indicated that 48.6% of respondents exhibited moderate self-love, while 42.9% showed low levels, highlighting the need for targeted mental health interventions. The pilot study findings indicated that self-love questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool for the measurement of self-love in a practical setting. This study will help administer a validated tool for self-love assessments in future research. By addressing self-love and promoting positive emotion practices, the tool has the potential to save lives and support global mental health initiatives.