Development and Preliminary Validation of the Resilience Among Adults With Diabetes Scale (RADS)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a theoretically informed instrument to measure diabetes-related resilience. Methods: Experts in diabetes self-management and resilience provided feedback on 55 candidate items. Factor structure and validity were examined using a sample of 255 adults with type 2 diabetes. Results: Expert feedback and exploratory factor analysis yielded a final scale of 15 items comprised of two factors: adaptability (α = .92) and determination (α = .87). Both subscales demonstrated good convergent validity with trait resilience ( r = .39 and r = .42). Both subscales showed emergent evidence of discriminant validity with measures of impression management ( r = .13, P = .061; r = .13, P = .047) but not of self-deceptive enhancement ( r s = .34 and .38, P < .001). Subscales demonstrated small to moderate correlations with diabetes self-management behaviors ( r s = .22-.40). Diabetes self-efficacy was positively correlated with adaptability ( r = .45, P < .001) and determination ( r = .56, P < .001) subscales. Conclusion: The factor structure is consistent with conceptualizations of resilience that emphasize active resistance and plasticity to stressors. The Resilience Among Adults With Diabetes Scale demonstrated good reliability and validity and may help identify patients who may benefit from tailored interventions.