Psychometric Properties of a Psychological Measure of Indigenous Personality (Suryomentaram's Perspective): Initial Study

Abstract

Background Character development is central in personality and developmental psychology, with strong character as a protective factor against psychological disorders. Given the importance of character assessment, this study explores the development and initial psychometric evaluation of an indigenous personality measure, the Suryomentaram Personality Scale (SPS), grounded in empirical research on individuals trained in Suryomentaram philosophies. Objective The study aimed to (1) develop the SPS and (2) evaluate its psychometric properties, including content validity, factor structure, and internal consistency reliability. Methods Three analytical methods were employed: content validity assessment by six subject matter experts (SMEs), exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and reliability analysis. A convenience sample of 282 students participated in EFA and reliability analyses. Participants were recruited through social media announcements and provided informed consent before completing the SPS. Results Content validity analysis revealed eight items falling below the acceptable Aiken's V threshold (< 0.8) out of 23 initially developed items. EFA of the remaining 15 items identified four relatively independent factors: perseverance, optimism, lack of worry and regret, and empathy. Internal consistency reliability estimates for each factor ranged from 0.482 to 0.716. Conclusion This initial study provides evidence for the adequate psychometric properties of the SPS based on content validity, EFA, and reliability analysis. Further research is needed to confirm these findings and explore the scale's convergent and discriminant validity.