Development and Initial Validation of a Multidimensional Mathematical Beliefs Scale for Elementary School Students

Irianto Aras; Jero Budi Darmayasa

doi:10.26740/jrpd.v11n3.p345-359

Authors

Irianto Aras University of Borneo Tarakan
Jero Budi Darmayasa University of Borneo Tarakan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26740/jrpd.v11n3.p345-359

Keywords:

Mathematical beliefs, instrument development, scale validation, Elementary School Students, Content Validity

Abstract

Research on students’ mathematics-related beliefs has expanded in secondary school contexts, and research remains limited regarding the development of belief scales written for elementary school students. This study aims to develop a multidimensional mathematical beliefs scale for elementary school students and to examine initial evidence of its content validity, item validity, and internal consistency. The scale covers four dimensions: beliefs about the teacher, beliefs about competence and significance of mathematics, beliefs about mathematics as a social activity, and beliefs about mathematics as a domain of excellence. A pool of 44 items was reviewed by five expert validators using the Content Validity Index (CVI) and then administered to 25 sixth-grade students in one public elementary school in Indonesia. Item-total Pearson correlations and Cronbach’s alpha were computed in SPSS. Forty-two items met the CVI threshold of 0.80, and the mean CVI was 0.96. In the pilot trial, 35 items exceeded the critical correlation value (r > 0.396, α = .05), with correlations ranging from 0.397 to 0.813. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.886 for the 35-item scale and ranged from 0.791 to 0.857 across dimensions. These results provide preliminary evidence of content validity and internal consistency. The small pilot sample and the absence of factor-analytic testing limit the conclusions, and larger samples are needed to examine the factor structure and criterion validity.

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