Lower extremity injuries are the most common sports related injury.
Many steps have been taken to attempt to identify individuals who might be at a
higher risk for sustaining a lower extremity injury. Resource and time intensive
screening techniques have been used previously to attempt to identify such
individuals. However these techniques have focused heavily on postural control
and landing mechanics in athletes, no psychological measure has been used to
identify individuals who might be at a higher risk of lower extremity injury.
Self-efficacy of balance can be defined as how capable an individual feels
he or she can balance in different scenarios. Research in the balance deficient
population (elderly, post-stroke, knee osteoarthritis) has revealed that selfefficacy
of balance is a quantifiable psychological component of balance related
behavior. As previously stated, current screening techniques for lower extremity
injuries do not incorporate psychological measures. Research suggests that
psychological indicators of balance confidence are important to measure in
conjunction with balance test performance to establish the relationship between
the two constructs. Assessment of these factors is necessary to examine how
psychological measures affect performance on tests used in clinical balance
assessments.
The objective of this dissertation was to develop the Self-Efficacy of
Balance Scale (SEBS), a psychometrically sound self-efficacy of balance
instrument for use in the young, active population. The relationship between selfefficacy
of balance and self-reported measures of lower extremity function, and
clinical and laboratory measures of balance were also examined in the young,
active population. It was hypothesized that a valid, reliable, responsive tool could
be created to accurately and precisely measure self-efficacy of balance in a
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young, active population. It addition, it was hypothesized that high levels of selfefficacy
of balance would have a significant, positive relationship with selfreported
measure of lower extremity function, and clinical and laboratory
measure of balance.
Results from the three studies brought about several interesting
observations. Studies one, two, and three demonstrated evidence of a
psychometrically sound instrument. This indicates that the SEBS is a valid,
reliable, responsive self-efficacy of balance instrument when evaluating young,
active individuals. Study three demonstrated the relationships between selfefficacy
of balance and self-reported measures of function, and objective
measures of balance. These relationships revealed that while lower extremity
function and some measures of balance influence scores of the SEBS, they do
not account for all of the variability of the SEBS. This finding further supports the
claim that balance behavior is changing as function and postural control change.
Therefore, future research should include investigation regarding the utility of the
SEBS, as well as longitudinal studies to establish effectiveness of identifying
individuals at a higher risk of sustaining a lower extremity injur