self-management

The first version of the SMAS-30 was originally developed in Dutch, with the aim to determine whether self-management courses for Dutch elderly people actually result in an improvement of self-management skills. In the second version, which was implemented in Lifelines, some questions were rephrased. The SMAS-30 measures six self-management skills, resulting in subscores per skill as well as a total sum score. The six skills are based on the theory of the self-management of well-being ¹⁾. These skills are:

Taking the initiative (active-motivational ability), Q1-5
Self-efficacy beliefs (cognitive ability), Q6-10
Investment behaviour (active-motivational ability), Q11-15
A positive frame of mind (cognitive ability), Q16-20
Multifunctionality or resources (resource-combining ability), Q21-25
Variety in resources (resource-combining ability), Q26-30

The SMAS-30/v2 comprises of 30 questions that refer to daily life activities. Things people do, hobby’s, contacts with other people, family, exercise, etcetera. Participants are intstructed to think of their own general life in the past three months, and to choose the most fitting response on a 5 or 6-point Likert scale. The exact options in the Likert scale change throughout the questionnaire as follows:

Q1-5, Q11-15, and Q20-25: [1] never; [2] rarely; [3] sometimes; [4] regularly; [5] often; [6] very often
Q6-10: 1] definitely not; [2] I don’t think so; [3] sometimes yes; sometimes no; [4] I think so; [5] definitely yes
Q16-20: [1] No!; [2] No; [3] More or less; [4] Yes, [5] Yes!
Q26-30: [1] none; [2] one; [3] two; [4] three or four; [5] fice or six; [6] more than six

A score for each self-management skill, and a total score for general self-management abilities, can be obtained as follows:

Convert each answer on a 6-point Likert scale to a 0-5 score, and each answer on a 5-point Likert scale to a 0-4 score.
Multiply the scores on 6-point Likert scale items by 4, and scores on 5-point Likert scale items by 5, to get a 0-20 score on each item.
Calculate the average of the 5 scores per skill – note that no more than 1 score per skill may be missing – and multiply the outcome by 5 to get a subscore between 0-100 for each of the six self-management skills.
The total self-management score is the average of the six subscores.
The results can be used to describe any or total self-management skills in a cohort, to evaluate changes over time, or to assess the effectivity of an event or an intervention.

The instrument can be used free of charge via http://www.meetinstrumentenzorg.nl. The developers of the instrument ask to cite the following sources: Steverink et al. (2005) on the theory behind the SMAS-30 ²⁾, ³⁾, ⁴⁾.

Questions English	Questions Dutch	Code	Variable	Assessment	Age
How often do you take the initiative to contact the people you care about?	Hoe vaak neemt u het initiatief tot contact met de mensen om wie u veel geeft?	smas_initiative_adu_q_01	SMAS1	1C	18+
How often do you take the initiative to have fun contacts with other people?	Hoe vaak neemt u het initiatief om leuke contacten met anderen te hebben?	smas_initiative_adu_q_02	SMAS2	1C	18+
How often do you take the initiative to actively engage in something?	Hoe vaak neemt u het initiatief om actief met iets bezig te zijn?	smas_initiative_adu_q_03	SMAS3	1C	18+
How often are you engaged in making your house or room as comfortable as possible for yourself (for example by cleaning up or by creating a cosy atmosphere)?	Hoe vaak bent u bezig uw huis of kamer voor uzelf zo comfortabel mogelijk te maken (bijv. door op te ruimen of het gezellig te maken)?	smas_initiative_adu_q_04	SMAS4	1C	18+
Do you ever try to be good at something?	Probeert u wel eens ergens goed in te zijn?	smas_initiative_adu_q_05	SMAS5	1C	18+
Are you good at something?	Bent u ergens goed in?	smas_selfefficacy_adu_q_06	SMAS6	1C	18+
Do you succeed in finding enjoyable activities?	Lukt het u om plezierige bezigheden te vinden?	smas_selfefficacy_adu_q_07	SMAS7	1C	18+
Do you succeed in letting others know that you care about them?	Lukt het u om anderen te laten merken dat u om hen geeft?	smas_selfefficacy_adu_q_08	SMAS8	1C	18+
Do you succeed in taking good care of yourself?	Lukt het u om goed voor uzelf te zorgen?	smas_selfefficacy_adu_q_09	SMAS9	1C	18+
Do you succeed in having fun contacts with other people?	Lukt het u om leuke contacten met anderen te hebben?	smas_selfefficacy_adu_q_10	SMAS10	1C	18+
Do you sometimes make a small gesture in order to maintain good contact with your acquaintances (for example making a phone call or sending a postcard)?	Doet u wel eens iets kleins om het contact met uw kennissen goed te houden (bijv. een telefoontje of een kaartje sturen)?	smas_investment_adu_q_11	SMAS11	1C	18+
Do you make sure you have enough regular activities (such as a hobby) so that you remain active?	Zorgt u voor voldoende vaste bezigheden (zoals een hobby) zodat u actief bezig blijft?	smas_investment_adu_q_12	SMAS12	1C	18+
Do you spend time and effort to maintain a good contact with the people you care about?	Besteedt u tijd en aandacht aan het onderhouden van een goed contact met de mensen om wie u veel geeft?	smas_investment_adu_q_13	SMAS13	1C	18+
Do you keep engaging in the things you are good at, so that you remain (very) good at them?	Blijft u bezig met de dingen waar u goed in bent, zodat u er ook (heel) goed in blijft?	smas_investment_adu_q_14	SMAS14	1C	18+
Do you make sure you exercise enough to stay fit longer?	Zorgt u voor voldoende lichaamsbeweging of het doen van oefeningen om langer fit te blijven?	smas_investment_adu_q_15	SMAS15	1C	18+
Do you expect that, in the future, you will continue to be able to take care of yourself?	Verwacht u dat u, in de toekomst, zich zult kunnen blijven redden?	smas_positivity_adu_q_16	SMAS16	1C	18+
Do you expect that, in the future, you will engage in pleasant activities?	Verwacht u dat u, in de toekomst, leuke bezigheden zult hebben?	smas_positivity_adu_q_17	SMAS17	1C	18+
Do you expect that, in the future, you will have family or friends around you?	Verwacht u dat u, in de toekomst, familie of vrienden om u heen zult hebben?	smas_positivity_adu_q_18	SMAS18	1C	18+
Do you expect that, in the future, you can be of meaning to others?	Verwacht u dat u, in de toekomst, iets kunt betekenen voor anderen?	smas_positivity_adu_q_19	SMAS19	1C	18+
Do you expect that, in the future, you will have sufficient pleasant social contacts with others?	Verwacht u dat u, in de toekomst, voldoende gezelligheid met anderen zult hebben?	smas_positivity_adu_q_20	SMAS20	1C	18+
Could you indicate to what extent the following statement applies to you? I do the activities that I find pleasurable together with others.	De bezigheden waar ik plezier aan beleef, doe ik samen met anderen.	smas_multifunctionality_adu_q_21	SMAS21	1C	18+
Could you indicate to what extent the following statement applies to you? Others benefit from the things I do for fun.	Anderen hebben baat bij de dingen die ik doe voor mijn plezier.	smas_multifunctionality_adu_q_22	SMAS22	1C	18+
Could you indicate to what extent the following statement applies to you? I engage in my hobbies together with other people.	Mijn hobby’s doe ik samen met anderen.	smas_multifunctionality_adu_q_23	SMAS23	1C	18+
Could you indicate to what extent the following statement applies to you? I do fun things with people from the neighborhood.	Ik doe gezellige dingen met mensen uit de buurt.	smas_multifunctionality_adu_q_24	SMAS24	1C	18+
Could you indicate to what extent the following statement applies to you? I sometimes help people in the neighborhood with something.	Ik help mensen uit de buurt wel eens ergens mee.	smas_multifunctionality_adu_q_25	SMAS25	1C	18+
How many hobbies or regular activities do you have?	Hoeveel hobby’s of vaste bezigheden heeft u?	smas_resources_adu_q_26	SMAS26	1C	18+
Do you have several ways to relax when this is needed?	Heeft u verschillende manieren om tot rust te komen wanneer dit nodig is?	smas_resources_adu_q_27	SMAS27	1C	18+
Are there things you are good at?	Zijn er dingen waar u goed in bent?	smas_resources_adu_q_28	SMAS28	1C	18+
With how many people (family members and others) do you have a confidential relationship?	Met hoeveel mensen (familieleden en anderen) heeft u een vertrouwelijke band?	smas_resources_adu_q_29	SMAS29	1C	18+
At how many occasions do you have enjoyable contacts with other people (for example while shopping, or at an association)?	Bij hoeveel gelegenheden heeft u leuke contacten met anderen (bijv. tijdens het winkelen, of bij een vereniging)?	smas_resources_adu_q_30	SMAS30	1C	18+

Table of Contents

Self-Management (SMAS)

Background

Scoring

Permission

Variables