Development of a new resilience scale: the resilience in midlife scale (RIM scale)

Abstract

Resilience, the ability to maintain or regain positive levels of functioning despite adversity, is one of several strengths that can assist people in positive life adaptation. Midlife (35-60 years) is a period when individuals need to adapt to several major changes and challenges. However, no scale exists to measure resilience specifically in the midlife population. Therefore, this study develops a new scale to measure resilience in midlife. The RIM scale consists of 25 items, each self-rated on a 5-point scale (0-4), with higher scores reflecting greater resilience. The scale was administered to a sample of 130 men and women, aged 35-60 years, from the normal population. The reliability, validity and factor analytic structure of the scale were evaluated, and reference scores established. The RIM scale demonstrated sound psychometric properties and factor analysis yielded five factors. The RIM scale has potential utility in clinical and research settings.