Adaptation and implementation of the social adaptation and ability scale with five-and six-year- old kinderganten children

ABSTRACT Adaptation and Implementation of the Social Adaptation and Ability Scale with Five- and Six-Year-Old Kindergarten Children Isık, Murat MA, Department of Child Development and Education Thesis Advisor: Assistant Professor Dr. Adalet KANDIR June 2007 This study was conducted with the objective of adapting the Social Adaptation and Ability Scale for use with five- and six-year-old children in kindergarten and implementing it on them. The study population consisted of fiveand six-year-old children attending the kindergartens affilated to official primary schools in the Keçiören district of Ankara city center during 2006-2007 academic year. The sample, on the other hand, was composed of 250 children, parents and teachers selected through stratification. In order for the scale to be adapted for use with children, the statements were transformed into appropriate statements for fiveand six-year old children. Following this, the scale was sent to five experts for their opinions and finalized in line with their suggestions. Data was collected by using a ?General Information Form?, ?Social Adaptation and Ability Scale? and ?Socio- Economic Level Determination Scale?. Validity and reliability studies were conducted by using the data obtained from the implementation of the Social Adaptation and Ability Scale. Accordingly, certain items which were found to be insufficient in distinguishing individuals were removed. Cronbach alpha values for the reliability of the scale were found to be .93 for Social Adaptation and .83 for Social Maladaptation. High alpha values showed that the internal consistency of the scale was high as well. It was also found that socioeconomic level and sex were statistically significant on the scores obtained from the Social Adaptation and Ability Scale.