The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 1 - 23

The Development and Validation of the Secondary Trauma in Resident Assistants Scale

ing intrusive thoughts (INT), avoidance (AVD),
and internal and external indicators of negative
alteration of mood and cognition (NAMIN and
NAMEX). This model differs from the four
symptoms described within the DSM-V, indicating that items meant to measure the fourth
symptom, arousal and reactivity, may need revision or that the resident assistants in this study
may not express criteria associated with this
symptom. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the model derived from EFA, indicating
four latent variables: AVD, INT, NAMEX, and
NAMIN. Secondary analysis of the first order
latent variables indicated an additional second
order latent variable: secondary trauma.
Furthermore, current scholarship regarding secondary traumatic stress suggests a
negative relationship between a professional
helper's self-efficacy and their self-reported
levels of secondary trauma, as well as a positive correlation between the helper's caseload
and self-reported levels of secondary trauma
(Cieslak et al., 2013; Newell & MacNeil, 2010).
Given this, the researcher sought to illustrate
discriminate validity by testing the relationship
between the instrument and the STSE scale
and convergent validity between the instrument and the amount of time RAs reported
supporting students (Cieslak et al., 2013). As
anticipated, results mirrored those of the existing literature. This may suggest the development of self-efficacy as a buffer to secondary
trauma, and RAs spending more time supporting students in crisis may increase their risk of
secondary traumatic stress.
Using DeVellis (2011) as a guide for scale
development, this instrument was created
through a systematic process resulting in a
robust tool that measures indicators of second-

ary traumatic stress in U.S. college resident
assistants. The next sections describe limitations of this instrument and offer suggestions
for how the instrument may be used in future
scholarship and practice.

LIMITATIONS
Before discussing the theoretical and practical
applications of this study, it is important to consider the scope and limitations associated with
the data. Primarily, scholars and practitioners
should understand that this instrument was
not intended to be used as a diagnostic tool.
Only a formally trained mental health provider
can diagnose mental health disorders. Given
that traumatic stress symptomatology can
exist alongside other mental health disorders,
it is also possible that this instrument may be
measuring symptoms of other underlying psychological ailments. Instead, this instrument
should be used as a tool to better understand
individual, or organizational, dispositions
framed within the context of symptoms associated with secondary traumatic stress.
Costello and Osborne (2005) offer a
number of criteria recommended for sample
sizes in exploratory factor analysis, which
this sample met. It should be acknowledged
that no national datasets exist to compare this
population to the entire resident assistant
population in the U.S.; therefore, generalizing
the results of this study should be done with
caution. It should also be noted that most participants identified as heterosexual (76.4%),
White (70.7%), and woman/female/feminine
(56.3%) and were from public universities
(73.6%), had one year of experience (47.1%),
and were in the third year (47.6%) of their undergraduate education.

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The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 1

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 1