How valid and reliable is the SI Profile as a measurement tool?
In evaluating measurement tools like the SI Profile, it is important to understand the implications of the terms validity and reliability. To say that an instrument is valid means that it measures what its designers or users claim that it measures. To say that it is reliable means that it gives similar or identical results when it is applied more than once under the same circumstances. Because the SI Profile is based on a unique conceptual model, it cannot be validated against any known objective standard; therefore, the appropriate measure is what is known as “face validity,” i.e. the extent to which it makes sense “on its face.” Face validity is determined by asking a number of people who have taken the instrument “How well do you believe your profile scores accurately describe your social skills and interaction patterns?” Reliability is a somewhat more complex issue, because the theoretical proposition behind the SI Profile supposes that a person’s social skills and interaction styl
