[Hungarian adaptation of the Group Schema Therapy Rating Scale - revised (GSTRS - R): a pilot study regarding the reliability measures of the scale].

Abstract

Introduction: Several studies supported the effectiveness of schema therapy in personality disorders, especially in borderline personality disorder. The goal of our methodological pilot study is to examine the reliability measures of the Hungarian version of the Group Schema Therapy Rating Scale - revised (GSTRS - R) created by Zarbock and colleagues (1) using a Hungarian sample. The scale makes it possible to assess the attitudes and working skills of group schema therapy psychotherapists, so that by evaluating therapeutic work in a clinical setting schema therapy could be further developed.

Methods: In the current study five independent coders (university students of psychology) trained in the coding of the Group Schema Therapy Rating Scale examined of ten video-taped sessions of schema group therapy taking place at the Psychiatric Clinic at Semmelweis University, Budapest. They evaluated the adherence and competence of the two participating schema therapists using various criteria described in the Group Schema Therapy Rating Scale. We have used Cronbach-alfa measure to evaluate the inner consistency of the two subscales (General and Specific subscale), and used Cohen's kappa and interclass correlation coefficient (ICC) to measure reliability of the scales and inter-rater reliability between coders.

Results: Based on our results regarding competence the inner consistency of the General subscale proved to be excellent, whereas regarding adherence the reliability was high on both subscales. Regarding competence reliability of the General subscale was excellent.

Conclusions: Based on our study of the reliability measures of the Hungarian version of GSTRS - we can state that they proved to be excellent. One limitation of our study is that we could not test fully the adherence and competence of the two schema therapists. In order to complete this, and other validity measures of the GSTRS, further studies are necessary.