The Development of a Social Intelligence Test for Teenagers: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Social intelligence refers to a person’s ability to understand and navigate social situations effectively. Teenagers who possess strong social intelligence are better equipped to build positive relationships, resolve conflicts, and make healthy decisions. Despite the importance of social intelligence, there are limited ways to measure this skill, especially during the teenage years. Thus, the aim of the present study was to develop and validate a scale that focuses on the following two aspects: social awareness and social perception. Methods: The reliability and validity of the Social Intelligence Test for Teenagers (SITT) was tested in teenagers aged between 14 and 18 years. Convergent validity was determined by the relationship between the SITT and the Tromsø Social Intelligence Scale (TSIS). Criterion validity was established by looking at the predictive relationship between the SITT and measures of social connectedness, empathy, and friendship. Results: The 19-item scale showed good internal reliability as measured by Cronbach’s alpha. The SITT mean score was significantly related to the TSIS Information Processing mean and the SITT Facial Expressions was significantly related to the TSIS Social Skills, even with age partialled out. Conclusions: The findings suggest that the SITT is a psychometrically sound tool to measure social intelligence in teenagers.