Scale Analysis

The Brief Sense of Community Scale (BSCS) is an assessment tool that measures individuals’ sense of belonging and connection with a community. This scale includes four core questions that evaluate different dimensions of the sense of community: the feeling of belonging (“I belong to this community”), care among members (“Members of this community care about each other”), personal influence within the community (“I have influence in this community”), and the importance individuals attach to the community (“This community is important to me”).

Scale Objective

The objective of this scale is to assess individuals’ feelings of belonging, support, and cohesion within a community. The BSCS is designed to provide a clear and concise measurement of social connectedness, allowing researchers, policymakers, and community leaders to better understand the extent to which members of a community feel connected and supported. By evaluating these dimensions, the BSCS can reveal critical information about social dynamics and help identify areas that need improvement in order to strengthen social cohesion and sense of belonging. In this way, the scale contributes to the development and implementation of strategies that promote well-being and mutual support among community members.

Scale Calibration

The BSCS-8 consists of 8 items, which are rated as follows:
1 = Strongly disagree
2 = Somewhat disagree
3 = Neutral / Neither agree nor disagree
4 = Somewhat agree
5 = Strongly agree

References

McMillan, D. W., & Chavis, D. M. (1986). Sense of community: A definition and theory. Journal of Community Psychology, 14, 6–23.
Peterson, N. A., Speer, P. W., & Hughey, J. (2006). Measuring sense of community: A methodological interpretation of the factor structure debate. Journal of Community Psychology, 34, 453–469.
Peterson, A. N., Speer, P. W., & McMillan, D. W. (2008). Validation of a brief sense of community scale: Confirmation of the principle theory of sense of community. Journal of Community Psychology, 36, 61–73.
Peterson, Speer, & McMillan (2008). Brief Sense of Community Scale. In Simmons, C. A., & Lehmann, P. (eds.), Tools for strengths-based assessment and evaluation (pp. 356–357). New York, NY: Springer.