Peer Leadership amongst Adolescents: Scale Development and Validation in India

Description

Akanksha Chandele¹, Atufa Khan², and Faseeh Amin³ (Director and Holistic Trauma Therapist, Nairatmya Foundation (I Am Wellbeing), Noida, Uttar Pradesh¹, Research Coordinator and Trauma-Informed Therapist, Nairatmya Foundation (I Am Wellbeing), Noida, Uttar Pradesh², Research Consultant, Nairatmya Foundation (I Am Wellbeing), Noida, Uttar Pradesh³)

Peer leadership is crucial in the social development, group cohesion and positive outcomes of the youth; but there is a dearth of empirically validated and culturally suitable measurement tools in the Indian context. The current research was intended to construct and test a Peer Leadership Scale for Adolescents with the help of a systematic exploratory research design. A total of 35 adolescents residing in the National Capital Region of India participated in semi-structured interviews to gain in-depth qualitative insights into adolescents’ perspectives and perceptions of peer leadership. Following the qualitative phase, an initial pool of items was developed and subjected to rigorous psychometric testing. The sample sizes for the exploratory and validation studies were 503 and 491 adolescents, respectively, to examine the factor structure and construct validity of the scale. These findings affirmed a six-factor model, which has acceptable reliability and validity scores. The final scale comprises 34 items and is available in both English and Hindi, enhancing its cultural relevance and accessibility. The scale has six dimensions of peer leadership Team: Building and Management Skills, Communication, Conflict Resolution, Persuasion Skills, Compassion, and Confidence, which encompass interpersonal and intrapersonal leadership abilities in adolescents.