Reexamining the validity and dimensionality of the Moorong Self-Efficacy Scale: improving its clinical utility

Objective: To improve the clinical utility of the Moorong Self-Efficacy Scale (MSES) by reexamining its factor structure and comparing its performance against a measure of general self-efficacy in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI). 

Design: Cross-sectional survey design. 

Setting: Community. 

Participants: Adults with SCI (N=161; 118 men and 43 women) recruited from Australia (n=82) and the United States (n=79), including 86 with paraplegia and 75 with tetraplegia. 

Interventions: None. 

Main Outcome Measures: Confirmatory factor analysis deriving fit indices on reported 1-, 2-, and 3-factor structures for the MSES. Exploratory factor analysis of MSES using principal component analysis with promax oblique rotation and structure validation, with correlations and multiple regression using cross-sectional data from the Sherer General Self-Efficacy Scale and Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). 

Results: The MSES was confirmed to have a 3-factor structure, explaining 61% of variance. Two of the factors, labeled social function self-efficacy and personal function self-efficacy, were SCI condition–specific, whereas the other factor (accounting for 9.7% of variance) represented general self-efficacy, correlating most strongly with the Sherer General Self-Efficacy Scale. Correlations and multiple regression analyses between MSES factors, Sherer General Self-Efficacy Scale total score, SF-36 Physical and Mental Component Summary scores, and SF-36 domain scores support validity of this MSES factor structure. No significant cross-cultural differences existed between Australia and the United States in total MSES or factor scores. 

Conclusions: The findings support a 3-factor structure encompassing general and SCI domain–specific self-efficacy beliefs and better position the MSES to assist SCI rehabilitation assessment, planning, and research.