Development of the Smoking Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (S-KAP) Instrument

Abstract

This report describes the development and measurement characteristics of a new measure of smoking knowledge, attitudes, and practices (S-KAP) among treatment providers. Data are based on survey responses from 336 paid staff working in one of three drug abuse treatment or HIV care settings. Exploratory factor analysis, used to examine the factor structure, pointed towards five underlying factors: a single “knowledge” factor, three “attitude” factors (‘treatment barriers,’ ‘counselor self-efficacy,’ and ‘counselor attitudes’) and a single “practices” factor. The Knowledge scale had a standardized Cronbach's alpha coefficient of .85. The coefficients for Barriers, Self-Efficacy, and Attitudes were .81, .72, and .74, respectively. The Practice scale had a standardized Cronbach's alpha coefficient of .91. These results indicate that the proposed scales have reasonably good psychometric characteristics and will allow researchers to quantify staff knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding smoking cessation treatments and issues.