Professional Psychology: Research and Practice

© 2019 American Psychological Association 2019, Vol. 50, No. 2, 95–105

0735-7028/19/$12.00 http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pro0000225

Advancing the Assessment of Professional Learning, Self-Care,

and Competence
Greg J. Neimeyer Jennifer M. Taylor
The American Psychological Association, Washington, DC University of Utah

Advances in the empirical study of continuing education in professional psychology rely on the
development and utilization of measurements that assess key aspects of learning, the translation of that
learning into practice, and the development of ongoing professional competence. This article describes
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.

4 such instruments. Each measure is designed to target an element that is critical to the overall processes
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.

and objectives of continuing education. These include measures to enhance professional learning, to
assess an ongoing commitment to lifelong learning, to measure levels of professional self-care, and
to assess foundational, functional, and continuing competencies among professional psychologists. This
article discusses each of these measures, reviews the developing literatures surrounding them, and
identifies contexts in which they might be useful in the ongoing study of continuing education and
continuing professional development. Copies of all 4 scales are included in the Appendixes to encourage
their further use in advancing the literatures on continuing professional development and competence.

Public Significance Statement

This article introduces the reader to four professional development tools (the Commitment-to-Change
Assessment, the Jefferson Scale of Psychotherapists Lifelong Learning, the Professional Self-Care
Scale, and the Professional Competencies Scale). These tools can be used by professional psychol-
ogists as self-assessment measures or by researchers to support the field of professional development
and professional competence.

Keywords: professional self-assessment, competence, professional development, lifelong learning, self-care

The rapid proliferation of new knowledge in psychology has
placed renewed demands on professional practitioners to keep
pace with ongoing advances. Overall, knowledge may remain
current in professional psychology for as little as about six to seven
years, with more rapidly diminishing durability in key areas of
practice such as psychopharmacology, child health, forensics, sub-
stance use, and neuropsychology, among others (Neimeyer, Tay-
lor, Rozensky, & Cox, 2014). This means that, in the absence of a
commitment to ongoing professional development, many practi-
tioners may begin to experience knowledge obsolescence even
while they are still in the early stages of their career.

Editor’s Note. Susan J. Simonian served as the action editor for this article.
GREG J. NEIMEYER received his PhD in counseling psychology from the
University of Notre Dame. He is an emeritus professor of psychology at the
University of Florida. A fellow of the American Psychological Associa-
tion, he has served as director of training and graduate coordinator in the
Department of Psychology and was inducted as a lifetime member of the
Academy of Distinguished Teaching Scholars. His research interests in-
clude the study of professional competence and lifelong learning. He
currently serves as the associate executive director of Continuing Educa-
tion in Psychology at the American Psychological Association.
JENNIFER M. TAYLOR received her PhD in counseling psychology from
the University of Florida. She is an assistant professor of counseling
psychology and counseling in the Department of Educational Psychology,
University of Utah. Her research interests include professional compe-
tence, continuing professional development, mentoring, continuing educa-
tion, and lifelong learning.
CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING THIS ARTICLE should be addressed to Greg
J. Neimeyer, American Psychological Association, 750 First Street, NE,
Washington, DC 20002-4242. E-mail: gneimeyer@apa.org
Best Practices
In response, the field of professional psychology, together with
other allied health professions, have redoubled their efforts to
formulate sets of “best practices” that can enhance learning and the
translation of that learning into practice (Institute on Medicine,
2010; Taylor & Neimeyer, 2017). The collective objective of these
best practices is to enhance the comprehension, retention, and
application of new knowledge in support of ongoing professional
competence. Some of these practices focus on the value of adapt-
ing the learning strategies to individuals’ unique learning styles,
presenting information multiple times utilizing different media,
and providing opportunities for individuals’ input, application, and
behavioral rehearsal of the material, in addition to receiving peer
or instructor review and feedback (Taylor & Neimeyer, 2017).
Although some mechanisms for triggering change are necessarily
intensive and may require considerable time, others are designed as
brief reflective exercises that can occur immediately after, or even
during, a learning event. A longstanding literature on the concept of a
commitment to change illustrates the value of utilizing this simple

95
 96 NEIMEYER AND TAYLOR
technique in the service of generating greater learning and the trans-
lation of that learning into actual practice (Lockyer et al., 2001).
Facilitating Learning Through Commitments to
Change (CTCs)
CTCs have been the subject of attention for the last few decades,
but only recently have they been imported into the fields of allied
health or, more recently still, psychology. CTCs are generally
generated following an educational event such as attending a
lecture, participating in a workshop, or reading an article (Wake-
field, 2004). To complete a CTC, participants are asked to identify
a set of possible changes they would like to make in their own
practice based on the educational event. They are asked to formu-
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
late these changes in specific, behavioral form, which requires
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
them to reflect on the relevance and applicability of the new
information and to adapt its application to their own interests and
experience. They are then asked to indicate their level of commit-
ment to making each of these changes they have formulated,
utilizing a rating scale that reflects their commitment to change,
from low (1) to high (5). In the Commitment to Change procedure,
participants are often reminded of their commitments in a subse-
quent follow-up 1–2 months later, and asked to indicate if they
actually enacted, or attempted to enact, each of their stipulated
CTCs, and to describe their experience or outcomes.
The effectiveness of the CTC procedure seems to be related to
its three steps. The timing of the administration, immediately after
the learning event, provides the participant an opportunity to
reflect on the most salient elements of the material and to formu-
late it in terms that are most relevant to their own experience,
interests, or needs. Rating the level of commitment provides a
concrete mechanism for reflecting on the importance or value of
the change, and it anchors the individual in a level of expectation
about completing it. And the subsequent follow-up provides a
sense of accountability, together with the opportunity to reflect on
the translation of the material into practice, or the barriers that may
have impeded or prevented that translation.
Applications of CTCs
CTCs have been the subject of attention in relation to the
organizational change literature for several decades, as a tool for
facilitating critical shifts in organizational structure, processes, or
style. Within the allied health literatures, medicine was among the
first to explore the utility of CTCs as a mechanism for facilitating
the translation of new knowledge into actual clinical practice.
Within this literature, the actual development and translation of
CTCs into practice varies widely, from 47% to 87% of participants
(Wakefield, 2004), based on a number of identified factors. These
factors include the extent to which individuals feels as if the CTCs
are useful and relatively easy to do, and the extent to which they
feel as though they have personal control over completing them
(Lockyer et al., 2001). The greater the environmental or institu-
tional constraints, the less likely individuals are to be able to
follow through on their commitments and accomplish the behav-
ioral changes they have formulated (Parochka & Paprockas, 2001).
A number of studies have demonstrated that the CTC procedure
can trigger actual changes in practice-related behavior, including
the specific prescriptions that physicians write following educa-
tional programs and the specific interventions utilized by occupa-
tional therapists over the course of their work with their clients
(Lowe, Rappolt, Jaglal, & Macdonald, 2007).
The precise mechanisms involved in triggering this translation
into practice are not fully known, but recent work has begun to
address them. Herbert, Lowe, and Rappolt (cited in Lowe, Hebert,
& Rappolt, 2009), for example, wondered whether reflection alone
at the end of a new learning experience was sufficient to promote
practice change, or whether the express formulation of a commit-
ment of change was an essential element. Reflection has long been
a key component of ongoing professional development programs,
as reflected in the Mann, Gordon, and MacLeod (2009) systematic
review of reflection within continuing medication education
courses. Lowe et al. (2009), in their study, asked half of their
participants to complete CTCs while the other half were prompted
to reflect on the workshop using the Critical Incident Question-
naire (CIQ) in the absence of the specific formulation of CTCs.
Two months following the workshop, there was a modest differ-
ence favoring the CTC group over the reflection-only group. The
percentage of those who demonstrated significant change was
significant in both groups, but it favored those who had formulated
specific commitments to change. Overall, 67% of the individuals
who used CTCs integrated these changes in practice, compared to
50% of those in the CIQ group who reported doing likewise.
A recent study of the relationship between reflection and behavior
change in continuing medical education provides further evidence in
this regard (Ratelle et al., 2017). In a cohort study of attendees at a
continuing medical education course at a national hospital, 223 par-
ticipants rated the level of reflection that was generated from them in
relation to each presentation they attended, and formulated
commitment-to-change statements at the conclusion of each course.
Reflection scores consisted of ratings, on a 5-point scale, about the
extent to which the presentation had prompted reflection, reconsider-
ation, deliberation, or critical reevaluation of their practices. A
3-month postcourse survey was conducted to determine whether
planned CTCs were successfully implemented, and whether they
were related to higher levels of reflection.
Overall, 65.5% of the participants who had formulated commit-
ments to change implemented at least one of them. Reflection
scores correlated significantly with the number of planned CTC
statements, r ⫽ .65, p ⬍ .01, suggesting the potential role of
reflection as a mechanism for enhancing CTCs and the subsequent
translation of new learning into actual practice. In addition, higher
reflection scores were related to the greater availability of oppor-
tunities for audience response and the use of clinical case illustra-
tions. The researchers concluded that “we found that reflection
strongly correlates with CTC” and that “continuing education
curricula that stimulate reflections may actually promote positive
patient care behaviors” (Ratelle et al., 2017, p. 166).
A recent extension of this work was conducted by psychologists
completing continuing education workshops at the annual American
Psychological Association conference (Neimeyer & Taylor, 2018).
Participants were asked to “carefully consider the potential applica-
tion of the workshop material to your own clinical practice. Think
about what is being discussed and whether it might apply to the work
that you are doing and, if so, how you might apply the content to your
current practices, or might change your practices in some ways as a
consequence of what you learn today. In other words, please reflect on
what you are learning and see if you can identify elements of what
you learn that would be useful to you, and identify for yourself what
 MEASURES OF PROFESSIONAL ASSESSMENT
those may be. At the end of the workshop we are going to invite you
to identify a few specific things that you would be willing to do, or do
differently, as a consequence of today’s workshop.” Immediately
following the workshop, participants were invited to formulate up to
five CTCs and to rate each CTC according to how easily it might be
integrated into their practice, how valuable that integration might be,
and how committed they were to attempting that integration. Results
of the study support Ratelle et al.’s (2017) study with physicians.
Overall, nearly 90% of the participants generated at least one CTC,
with the modal number being four CTCs, suggesting again the po-
tential value of proactive instructions to reflect on the utility and
application of new learning as a mechanism for enhancing the prob-
ability of its translation into subsequent practice.
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This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
Summary
Professional psychologists who are interested in enhancing
learning, and the translation of that learning into practice, may
increase the retention and translation of material by incorporating
CTCs into their professional development programs. Although the
overall effectiveness of CTCs as a tool to enhance the integration
of new learning into practice is still under study, the current
evidence is promising. The incorporation of simple reflective
questions into a learning experience may itself be useful, as when
the psychologist asks, “How can I use this new knowledge?” “How
does this apply to my practice and to what I do?” or “What might
I do differently based on what I have learned today?” Although
simple reflection itself appears to facilitate both learning and the
translation of that learning into practice, the express formulation of
potential changes and a commitment to those changes may add
further value (Lowe et al., 2009). Overall, the formulation of CTCs
represents a relatively simple mechanism for promoting reflection,
anchoring expectations regarding subsequent application, and le-
veraging new learning into novel practice behaviors. Simple ex-
tensions of the CTC procedure that may provide additional benefit
include conducting surveys of postcourse behaviors to assess com-
pliance with the CTCs, encouraging participants to report to col-
leagues or other peers regarding their CTCs in order to build in
additional elements of accountability, or establishing timelines for
the completion of CTCs. With continued utilization and examina-
tion, commitment-to-change procedures may join the ranks of
other processes, procedures, and techniques that jointly constitute
what has increasingly come to be recognized as the set of “best
practices” in the field of ongoing professional education and
continuing professional competence. Appendix A contains a com-
plete copy of a Commitment-to-Change Assessment that may be
useful in evaluating and facilitating new learning in professional
training and development contexts.
Assessing Lifelong Learning Through the Jefferson
Scale of Psychotherapist Lifelong Learning
In the field of professional psychology, as in broader allied
health fields, a commitment to learning throughout one’s career
has been described as a critical element of professionalism, as well
as an ethical mandate. The APA Ethical Principles of Psycholo-
gists and Code of Conduct American Psychological Association
(2002) stipulates that “psychologists undertake ongoing efforts to
develop and maintain their competence,” a task that is made
increasingly difficult with the rapid pace of new knowledge gen-
97
eration and the diminishing durability of knowledge as a conse-
quence. Continuing education plays a critical role in lifelong
professional learning, although it does not define it. The American
Psychological Association regards continuing education as an on-
going process consisting of learning activities that (1) are relevant
to psychological practice, education, and science, (2) enable psy-
chologists to keep pace with emerging issues and technologies, and
(3) allow psychologists to maintain, develop, and increase com-
petencies in order to improve services to the public and enhance
contributions to the profession (American Psychological Associa-
tion Council of Representatives, 2000).
Lifelong learning, however, represents a broader, more com-
plex, and multidimensional construct that includes personal and
motivational factors that operate within a value system that em-
phasizes creativity, empowerment, and an ongoing quest for new
knowledge and skills (Taylor & Neimeyer, 2015). The breadth of
the construct has presented challenges both to its operationaliza-
tion in general as well as to its specific relevance to professional
psychologists. Measures of self-directed learning in general adult
populations are available, for example, but often assess generic
attitudes toward learning (“I love to learn”; Guglielmino, 1978), or
personality characteristics of self-directed learners in ways that
have led to variable indications of reliability and inconclusive
studies of validity (Oddi, Ellis, & Altman Roberson, 1990).
In response to the need for a more focused instrument with sound
psychometrics, Hojat and his colleagues began developing the Jeffer-
son Scale of Physician Lifelong Learning (JSPLL) scale (Hojat,
Veloski, Nasca, Erdmann, & Gonnella, 2006) that has since been
modified for use with psychologists (Taylor & Neimeyer, 2015).
Importantly, Hojat and colleagues (2006) defined lifelong learning
operationally as “a concept that involves a set of self-initiated activ-
ities (behavioral aspect), and information seeking skills (capabilities)
that are activated in individuals with a sustained motivation to learn
and the ability to recognize their own learning needs (cognition)” (p.
931). Early factor analytic work yielded four factors that corre-
sponded to these conceptual features: “professional learning beliefs
and motivation,” “scholarly activities,” “attention to learning oppor-
tunities,” and “technical skills in seeking information.”
Subsequent work in support of the instrument follows from a
study of 5,553 graduates of Jefferson Medical College between
1975 and 2000 (Hojat, Veloski, & Gonnella, 2012), where a wide
variety of performance variables were positively associated with
higher scores on the JSPLL scale. These included graduate school
standing and a wide range of indicators of professional accom-
plishment, such as publication and grant productivity, professional
presentations and addresses, and leadership positions within aca-
demic and professional societies, organizations, or institutions.
Given the centrality of lifelong learning to the field of profes-
sional psychology, it is surprising that its operationalization and
measurement have not received greater attention. One recent effort
in this regard involved the modification of the JSPLL (Hojat et al.,
2006) for use with professional psychologists. Because the scale
was originally designed for physicians, the items were adapted for
psychotherapists (see Appendix B) and renamed the Jefferson
Scale of Psychotherapist Lifelong Learning, accordingly (Taylor,
Neimeyer, & Wear, 2012; Taylor & Neimeyer, 2015). As with its
original form, the revised JSPLL consists of 19 items, each mea-
sured on a 4-point rating scale. Lower scores represent lower
orientations toward lifelong learning.
 98 NEIMEYER AND TAYLOR
In a study of 413 professional psychologists, Taylor et al. (2012)
reported an overall Cronbach’s alpha of r ⫽ .85 for the total scale
score, with moderately strong subscale scores, as well. The sub-
scale for professional learning beliefs and motivation had a Cron-
bach’s alpha of r ⫽ .78 (9 items), the subscale for scholarly
activities had an r ⫽ .80 (4 items), the subscale for attention to
learning opportunities had an r ⫽ .77 (4 items), and the subscale
for technical skills in seeking information had an r ⫽ .62 (2 items).
In addition to exploring the reliability of the measure, Taylor
and colleagues (2012) explored the convergent validity of the scale
and found significant relationships between lifelong learning and
several related constructs. Higher levels of lifelong learning cor-
related with higher levels of both Formal CE (r ⫽ .25) and
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
Informal CE (r ⫽ .38), as well as measures of professional com-
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
petence (r ⫽ .54), professional self-efficacy (r ⫽ .16), and a range
of performance indicators such as publication records (r ⫽ .49),
awards (r ⫽ .37), and professional service both as reviewer (r ⫽
.46) and on professional committees (r ⫽ .45). Similarly, Taylor
and Neimeyer (2015) conducted a follow-up study with 136 psy-
chologists in the Midwest, and their findings provided further
validation of the relationships between lifelong learning and other
professional constructs. In their 2015 study, lifelong learning was
found to be significantly related to Formal (r ⫽ .61) and Informal
CE (r ⫽ .38), professional competence (r ⫽ .61) and engagement
in scholarly activities (r ⫽ .52). These findings provide provisional
support for the potential utility of the scale for use in assessing a
commitment to learning among professional psychologists across
the course of their professional lifespans in a way that might be
useful in ongoing efforts to understand the concomitants, and
facilitators, of a commitment to lifelong learning across the course
of professional training and practice.
Summary
A robust literature within medicine indicates the potentially
important role of lifelong learning in helping to scaffold the
attitudes and behaviors that promote ongoing professional perfor-
mance, competence, and accomplishment. While corresponding
data within professional psychology remains in its nascence, pro-
visional evidence supports the potential utility of assessing and
promoting levels of lifelong learning. Graduate training programs
and internships, both tasked with inculcating the values of lifelong
learning, could utilize the Jefferson Scale of Psychotherapist Life-
long Learning (Taylor et al., 2012; Taylor & Neimeyer, 2015) to
assess lifelong learning attitudes and behaviors and to monitor
them over the course of training. Likewise, researchers interested
in exploring the role of lifelong learning in maintaining profes-
sional competence or predicting professional accomplishment may
find the measurement of this construct as useful in their programs
of research. A copy of the Jefferson Scale of Psychotherapist
Lifelong Learning appears in Appendix B to encourage the ongo-
ing exploration of this construct and its potential value in programs
of research within the field of professional psychology.
Monitoring Self-Care: The Professional
Self-Care Scale
Although continuing education is designed to promote ongoing
professional development, the role of personal well-being has been a
longstanding feature of the competency literature (Guy, Poelstra, &
Stark, 1989). At the extreme, emotional and mental distress has been
linked to professional dysfunction and compromised performance,
which has spawned renewed attention to issues of professional self-
care (Wise, 2010; Wise & Gibson, 2012). The importance of self-care
echoes the longstanding, and broader, recognition of the importance
that personal well-being and adjustment play in effective service
delivery. Skovholt and Starkey (2010), for example, have identified
what they call the “three legs of the practitioner’s learning stool,”
noting that personal maturation, scholarly development, and ongoing
personal experience all can play critical roles in developing, and
maintaining professional competence (p. 125). Significant personal
experiences, such as loss, grief, pain, and recovery, all have the ability
to enhance, or compromise, our ability to empathize and intervene in
relation to the suffering we work with. “In order to be most effective
with clients, therapists need to realize and accept their own human-
ness,” note Skovholt and Starkey (p. 129), highlighting the interde-
pendence between personal experiences and professional capabilities.
Professional psychologists are subject to many of the stresses
and strains common to everyone else. In a study of members of the
Minnesota Psychological Association, for example, many psychol-
ogists reported significant mental health concerns (Brodie & Rob-
inson, 1991). A substantial percentage of psychologists (47%)
reported experiencing depression; for example; 60% reported feel-
ing burned out or overworked, and 49% reported experiencing
relationship problems. More recently, researchers have concluded
that psychologists are at an increased risk of suicide (Kleespies et
al., 2011). Other studies have reported that relatively high levels of
substance abuse, feelings of isolation, emotional exhaustion, and
anxiety are also common among practicing psychotherapists (El-
liott & Guy, 1993; Mahoney, 1997; Simpson et al., 2018), under-
scoring the acute need for attention to issues of self-care within the
ranks of professional psychologists (Wise & Barnett, 2016).
In addition, practicing psychotherapists face distinctive stressors
related to the services they provide and the populations they may
work with. Compassion fatigue is the result of the “caring cycle,”
which is characterized by a cycle of empathy, involvement, and
attachment to clients, followed by termination of the therapeutic
relationship (Skovholt & Trotter-Mathison, 2016). This process
can lead the therapist to feel emotionally depleted and exhausted,
registering an adverse effect on their professional functioning. For
this reason, self-care has been regarded as an essential element of
professional renewal and has been nominated as a critical ingre-
dient in preventing burnout (see Brucato & Neimeyer, 2009) and
maximizing professional capacities (Wise & Gibson, 2012). Self-
care can include a wide range of activities that enable an individual
to maintain physical and emotional well-being. Participating in
hobbies, reading, personal therapy, and taking vacations are all
examples of potential self-care behaviors that may reduce levels of
stress and contribution to levels of personal adjustment and well-
being (Mahoney, 1997). The primary objective of self-care is not
the elimination of stress, but an adaptive coping with it (Barnett,
Baker, Elman, & Schoener, 2007), developing or embracing more
constructive forms of self-care in favor of more maladaptive forms
of coping (e.g., through drugs or alcohol).
The role of continuing education in promoting self-care and
supporting ongoing professional competence has only recently
begun to receive attention. A compelling conceptual rationale for
the role of CE in self-care has been advanced by Wise (2010) and
further developed by Wise and Gibson (2012) and Wise and
 MEASURES OF PROFESSIONAL ASSESSMENT
Barnett (2016). The empirical evidence for the relationship among
CE, self-care, and professional competence is in its early stages,
however. One study of continuing medical education (CME), for
example, has reported that levels of CME participation were in-
versely related to levels of stress, job dissatisfaction, and burnout
(Kushnir, Cohen, & Kitai, 2000).
Likewise, among psychologists, the work of Taylor et al. (2012)
supports the interrelationship among these variables. In their survey of
71 practicing psychologists, they found that levels of self-care were
inversely related to levels of stress (r ⫽ ⫺.49) and positively related
to levels of life satisfaction (r ⫽ .49), life adjustment (r ⫽ .46), and
measures of professional competence (r ⫽ .29) and professional
self-efficacy (r ⫽ .26). Neither formal nor informal CE was related to
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
levels of self-care, although CE was related to levels of perceived
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
professional competence. In concluding their work, Taylor and col-
leagues observed that it is noteworthy that “current conceptualizations
of professional competency place a premium on a variety of personal
qualities . . . that are uncommon targets of continuing education
programs” (p. 257). Wise and Barnett (2016) and Wise and Gibson
(2012) articulate a compelling rationale for considering self-care as an
ethical imperative, and advocate a broad and flexible approach to
self-care within graduate training programs as well as postgraduate
continuing education programs.
A precondition to advancing work in the area of self-care,
however, is the development and utilization of psychometrically
sound measurements of this construct. One recent development is
this regard is the Professional Self-Care Scale (PSCS) developed
by Neimeyer, Taylor, and Dorociak (2015).
Professional Self-Care Scale
The PSCS is a 19-item self-rated instrument designed to assess
multiple dimensions of professional self-care (Neimeyer et al.,
2015) that has been used in a number of studies of professional
psychologists (Taylor, Fouad, Latorre, Milam, & Santana, 2018;
Taylor, Neimeyer, Cox, Rozensky, & McLeod, 2013).
In working with this instrument, Taylor, Neimeyer, and Doro-
ciak (2018) provided a three-sample factor analysis of the scale
using undergraduates (N ⫽ 629), predoctoral interns (N ⫽ 264),
and board-certified professional psychologists (N ⫽ 531) to deter-
mine the factor structure, reliability, and aspects of the measure’s
convergent and divergent validity. Results of their work revealed
a robust five-factor structure (Meaning Making; Discuss Health
Concern; Exercise; Life Adjustments; and Attitudes, Thoughts,
and Emotions). Cronbach alphas for each of the subscales was
moderately high (r ⫽ .78 –.85), with an overall full-scale Cronbach
of r ⫽ .85. In a subsequent study of 559 graduate students, the
PSCS continued to perform well (overall Cronbach’s alpha: r ⫽
.85, and reliabilities for each subscale reflected the following,
respectively: r1 ⫽ .85, r2 ⫽ .82, r3 ⫽ .85, r4 ⫽ .80, r5 ⫽ .80). The
PSCS demonstrated promising convergent and divergent validity
as well, showing a positive relationship with the Satisfaction With
Life Scale among university samples (r ⫽ .55; Diener, Emmons,
Larsen, & Griffin, 1985) and an inverse relationship with the
Perceived Stress Scale (r ⫽ ⫺.28; Cohen, Kamarck, & Mermel-
stein, 1983). Among board-certified psychologists and graduate stu-
dents, respectively, findings were consistent. The PSCS was nega-
tively correlated with the Perceived Stress Scale (r ⫽ ⫺.36, ⫺.49;
Taylor et al., 2013; Taylor, Neimeyer, & Dorociak, 2018). Subsequent
99
work has shown a strong relationship between the PSCS and mea-
sures of professional competence, ranging from r ⫽ .31 (Taylor &
Neimeyer, 2014) to r ⫽ .51 (Taylor et al., 2013), levels of
professional self-efficacy (r ⫽ .43; Taylor, Neimeyer, & Dorociak,
2018), lifelong learning (r ⫽ .18; Taylor & Neimeyer, 2014), and
diversity awareness and appreciation (r ⫽ .38; Taylor &
Neimeyer, 2014). Taken together, these findings suggest that cre-
ating a culture of competence, self-care, and lifelong learning may
translate to greater openness and engagement with other cultures
as well.
Summary
The Professional Self-Care Scale (Neimeyer et al., 2015; Taylor,
Neimeyer, & Dorociak, 2018) is a brief, psychometrically promising
self-report measure that assesses five dimensions of self-care. Its use
within graduate training contexts, with predoctoral internships, and
among practicing professional psychologists suggests its potential
value as a tool for assessing levels of self-care and predicting levels of
professional competence and a commitment to lifelong learning. It
may be useful as a tool for monitoring levels of self-care within
professional training or practice contexts, and as a mechanism for
determining the nature of the relationships among professional com-
petence, self-care, and a commitment to ongoing professional devel-
opment. A complete version of the scale appears in Appendix C in
order to facilitate its use in further training and research contexts.
Measuring Professional Competence Through the
Professional Competence Scale
Attention to issues of professional competence has been an endur-
ing feature of the field of professional psychology since its inception
(Webster, 1971), with notable conferences marking milestone mo-
ments in the field’s quest for practical, conceptual, and empirical
advances in the concept of competence. In 2002, the American
Psychological Association invited over 130 psychologists to the Com-
petencies Conference: Future Directions in Education and Credential-
ing. At this conference, psychologists updated the 1986 National
Council of Schools and Programs of Professional Psychology
(NCSPP) foundational and functional competencies for psychologists
and developed a “Cube Model” of professional competence. Twelve
professional competencies were conceptualized as either foundational
competencies (e.g., knowledge, attitudes, or values critical for prac-
ticing in the field) or functional competencies (e.g., the skills to carry
out professional roles and requirements). These competencies were
defined at three stages of professional practice: readiness for practi-
cum, readiness for internship, and readiness for licensure (Fouad et
al., 2009; Rodolfa et al., 2005).
Since its initial inception, several extensions of the Cube Model
have occurred. For example, researchers have conceptualized an
additional professional competency domain (continuing competen-
cies) that covers lifelong learning values and competencies beyond
readiness for licensure. Additionally, the Cube Model has ex-
panded to a variety of professional contexts, including competen-
cies for clinical child psychologists, pediatric psychologists, and
geropsychologists. Despite theoretical developments of the Cube
Model, little empirical work has been generated on the basis of the
model. The availability of assessment tools built on this theoretical
model are essential to establishing its empirical validity and utility.
The Professional Competence Scale represents one such tool, a
 100 NEIMEYER AND TAYLOR
brief self-assessment measure patterned after the Cube Model
(Taylor, Neimeyer, & Duffy, 2018).
Professional Competencies Scale
The Professional Competencies Scale (PCS; Taylor, Neimeyer,
& Duffy, 2018) was created as a tool to explore critical compo-
nents of professional competence among trainees and licensed
psychologists. The scale includes 10 items, comprising of three
subscales: Foundational Competencies, Functional Competencies,
and Continuing Competencies. Cronbach’s alphas suggest suffi-
cient interitem reliability for the PCS and its subscales. Among
samples of over 400 general licensed psychologists, more than 450
board-certified psychologists, and over 400 predoctoral interns,
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
overall reliability for the PCS was reported at r ⫽ .80, .76, and .76
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
(r ⫽ .69, .76, and .50 for Foundational Competencies; r ⫽ .82, .53,
and .74 for Functional Competencies, and r ⫽ .65, .88, and .62 for
Continuing Competencies; Taylor, Neimeyer, & Duffy, 2018).
Convergent validity for each subscale provides evidence of signifi-
cant relationships between the PCS and other related constructs (Tay-
lor, Neimeyer, & Duffy, 2018). The Foundational Competencies
subscale was significantly related to a measure of diversity appreci-
ation and awareness (r ⫽ .31) and therapist self-care (r ⫽ .11). The
Functional Competencies subscale was significantly related to profes-
sional self-efficacy (r ⫽ .48). And the Continuing Competencies
subscale was significantly related to measures of lifelong learning
(r ⫽ .73), engagement in formal continuing education (r ⫽ .19) and
in informal continuing education (r ⫽ .22).
Summary
The Professional Competencies Scale (Taylor, Neimeyer, & Duffy,
2018) is a concise, psychometrically promising instrument that as-
sesses three components of professional competence (Foundational,
Functional, and Continuing Competencies) based on the Cube Model.
This measure can be used in training contexts for supervision and
advising, in professional contexts as a self-assessment measure, and
within research contexts as a brief assessment tool for exploring the
development and maintenance of professional competencies.
Limitations
It is important to note that all of the assessments introduced in
this article were initially designed as self-report measures, and
self-report measures carry certain limitations. For example, self-
report measures are subject to social desirability biases and de-
mand characteristics. In addition, participants may not recall an-
swers to some survey questions (e.g., how often they search
computer databases to learn about new developments in the field,
or how often they take part in physical activities), and participants
may differ in the ways in which they interpret survey items (e.g.,
“somewhat agree” may mean something different to different
participants). Nonetheless, these measures constitute provisional
instruments of potential utility that may be worthy of additional
exploration, validation, and application. As it stands, the utility of
these instruments remains promissory with potential applications
in educational, training, and professional practice contexts.
Conclusion
In this article, four professional assessments were introduced, all
of which offer utility in a range of different training and practice
settings. These include graduate and postgraduate training con-
texts, as well a number of different practice contexts where it may
prove valuable to facilitate the translation of new learning into
practice (the Commitment-to-Change Scale), to assess therapists
levels of lifelong learning (the Jefferson Scale of Psychologist
Lifelong Learning), to monitor levels of professional self-care (the
Professional Self-Care Scale), or to monitor or promote levels of
foundational, functional, or continuing competencies (the Profes-
sional Competencies Scale). While research suggests that profes-
sional knowledge attrition can occur over time (Dubin, 1972;
Taylor & Neimeyer, 2015), these measures may provide valuable
mechanisms for tracking these important components of ongoing
professional development and assessing the impact of various
interventions aimed at facilitating them.
One connecting thread between each of the measures introduced
in this paper relates to the potential value of creating a network of
learners and facilitating interpersonal relationships to support pro-
fessional competence. There is promising research that suggests
that professional development communities can enhance profes-
sional competence (Johnson & Fargo, 2014), and these tools may
be useful in those contexts. In developing and sharing their pro-
fessional development plans, for example, psychologists could use
these instruments to monitor and document their commitment to
key components of professional development, and to demonstrate
their accountability to the maintenance of competence in relation
to the public that they serve.
By embracing further measures and mechanisms of accountabil-
ity, professional psychology might advance an understanding of
the components of professional competence and at the same time
affirm its continuing compact with the society it seeks to support.
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Appendix A
Commitment-to-Change Assessment

In considering what you have just read, please identify one or more specific things that you might add to, or do differently, in your practice
as a professional psychologist as a result of today’s training. Please make these as specific and behavioral as you can; things you might
actually be able to integrate into your work within the coming weeks or months in your practice. Record as many as are appropriate to
you below by indicating specific things you are committed to doing or changing as a result of what you have learned:
1. Commitment to Change Number 1.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How easy do you think it would be to do this item?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
How valuable would it be to do this?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
How committed are you to doing this?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
2. Commitment to Change Number 2.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How easy do you think it would be to do this item?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
How valuable would it be to do this?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
How committed are you to doing this?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
3. Commitment to Change Number 3.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How easy do you think it would be to do this item?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
How valuable would it be to do this?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
How committed are you to doing this?
Very Easy 5 4 3 2 1 Very Difficult
If you are interested in doing so, consider setting a goal for yourself in relation to a timeline for attempting these changes and, perhaps,
telling a colleague about your anticipated changes and discussing with them how these changes turned out.
Goal with Timeline to Make Changes:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
 MEASURES OF PROFESSIONAL ASSESSMENT 103

(Appendices continue)

Appendix B
Jefferson Scale of Psychotherapist Lifelong Learning

Response Options 11. I give on average at least one presentation at profes-

1 ⫽ Strongly Disagree sional meetings in every given year.
2 ⫽ Disagree
3 ⫽ Agree 12. I frequently publish articles in peer-reviewed journals.
4 ⫽ Strongly Agree
13. I routinely exchange e-mail messages with my colleagues.
1. Rapid changes in science require constant updating of
knowledge and development of new professional skills. 14. I routinely attend presentations offered in my field regard-
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.

less of whether a certificate for attendance is offered.

This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.

2. I recognize my need to constantly acquire new profes-

sional knowledge. 15. I routinely attend annual meetings of professional organi-
zations.
3. Lifelong learning is a professional responsibility of all
psychotherapists. 16. I attend professional development programs regardless of
whether CE credit is offered.
4. I believe I would fall behind if I stopped learning about
new developments in my profession. 17. I take any opportunity to gain new knowledge/skills that
are important to my profession.
5. One of the important missions of undergraduate educa-
tion is the development of the habit of lifelong learning. 18. My preferred approach to finding an answer to a question
is to search the appropriate computer databases.
6. I enjoy reading articles in which issues of my profes-
sional interests are discussed. 19. I search computer databases (e.g., PsycLIT) to find out
about new developments in my field.
7. I always make time for self-directed learning, even
when I have a busy practice schedule and other profes- Note. Items 1–9 comprise subscale 1 (Professional Learning Be-
sional and family obligations. liefs and Motivation), items 10 –13 comprise subscale 2 (Scholarly
Activity), items 14 –17 comprise subscale 3 (Attention to Learning
8. Searching for an answer to a question is, in and by itself,
Opportunities), and items 18 –19 comprise subscale 4 (Technical
rewarding.
Skills in Information Seeking). To score: each item is rated on a
9. I read professional journals at least once every week. scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree), with higher
scores indicating greater levels of lifelong learning. The scale is
10. I actively conduct research as a principle investigator or adapted from the Jefferson Scale of Physician Lifelong Learning
coinvestigator. (Hojat et al., 2003, 2006).

Appendix C
Professional Self-Care Scale

The following 11 questions contain statements about your present 2 ⫽ Rarely

way of life or personal habits. Please respond to each item as 3 ⫽ Occasionally
accurately as possible, and try not to skip any item. Indicate the 4 ⫽ Sometimes
frequency with which you engage in each behavior. 5 ⫽ Often
Response Options 6 ⫽ Very Often
1 ⫽ Never 7 ⫽ Routinely

(Appendices continue)
 104 NEIMEYER AND TAYLOR
1. Believe that my life has purpose.
2. Maintain meaningful and fulfilling relationship with others.
3. Look forward to the future.
4. Work toward long-term goals in my life.
5. Touch and am touched by people I care about.
6. Report any unusual signs or symptoms to a physician or
other health professional.
7. Question health professionals in order to understand their
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
instructions.
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
8. Discuss my health concerns with professionals.
9. Exercise vigorously for 20 or more minutes at least three
times a week (such as walking, bicycling, aerobic dancing,
using a stair climber).
10. Take part in light to moderate physical activity (such as
sustained walking 30 – 40 min 5 or more times per week).
11. Take part in leisure-time (recreational) physical activities
(such as swimming, dancing, bicycling).
A list of statements which people have used to describe themselves is
given below. Please read each statement and then select the appro-
priate statement to indicate how much you agree or disagree with the
statement or a description of you. There are no right or wrong
answers. Do not spend too much time on any one statement but give
the answer which seems to be the most descriptive of you.
Response Options
1 ⫽ Strongly Disagree
2 ⫽ Disagree
3 ⫽ Somewhat Disagree
4 ⫽ Neutral
5 ⫽ Somewhat Agree
6 ⫽ Agree
7 ⫽ Strongly Agree
12. As circumstances change, I make the needed adjust-
ments to stay healthy.
(Appendices continue)
13. If my mobility is decreased, I make the needed adjust-
ments.
14. When needed, I set new priorities in the measures that I
take to stay healthy.
15. I look for better ways to take for myself.
We would like to ask you some questions about your emotional
life, in particular, how you control (that is, regulate and manage)
your emotions. The questions below involve two distinct aspects of
your emotional life. One is your emotional experience, or what you
feel like inside. The other is your emotional expression, or how
you show your emotions in the way you talk, gesture, or behave.
Although some of the following questions may seem similar to one
another, they differ in important ways.
Response Options
1 ⫽ Strongly Disagree
2 ⫽ Disagree
3 ⫽ Somewhat Disagree
4 ⫽ Neutral
5 ⫽ Somewhat Agree
6 ⫽ Agree
7 ⫽ Strongly Agree
16. When I want to feel more positive emotion (such as joy
or amusement), I change what I’m thinking about.
17. When I want to feel more positive emotion, I change the
way I’m thinking about the situation.
18. I control my emotions by changing the way I think
about the situation I’m in.
19. When I want to feel less negative emotion, I change the
way I’m thinking about the situation.
Note. Items 1–5 comprise subscale 1 (Orientation toward Mean-
ing Making/Purpose), items 6 – 8 comprise subscale 2 (Commit-
ment to Discussing Health Concerns With a Health Professional),
items 9 –11 comprise subscale 3 (Commitment to Exercise), items
12–15 comprise subscale 4 (Commitment to Making Necessary
Life Adjustments), and items 16 –19 comprise subscale 5 (Orien-
tation Toward Changing Attitudes/Emotions/Thoughts).
 MEASURES OF PROFESSIONAL ASSESSMENT
Appendix D
Professional Competencies Scale
To what extent do you agree with each of the following in relation
to your practice . . .
Response Options
1 ⫽ Strongly disagree
2 ⫽ Disagree
3 ⫽ Neither agree nor disagree
4 ⫽ Agree
5 ⫽ Strongly agree
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
Foundational Competencies Subscales
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
Professionalism Item
1. I contribute to the development and advancement of the
profession and colleagues.
Reflective Practice/Self-Assessment/Self-Care Item
2. I recognize when new or improved competencies are required
for effective practice.
Scientific Knowledge and Methods Item
3. I routinely utilize scientific knowledge and skills in the
solution of problems.
Functional Competencies Subscales
Assessment Items
4. My interviews and reports lead to the formulation of appro-
priate diagnoses and treatment plans.
5. I interpret assessment results accurately, taking into account
the limitations of the evaluation method.
105
Consultation Items
6. I demonstrate the ability to gather information necessary to
answer referral questions.
7. I prepare clear, useful consultation reports and recommenda-
tions to all appropriate parties.
Continuing Competences Subcale
Psychotherapist Lifelong Learning Scale (Measures three
components of lifelong learning: Learning Beliefs and Motivation,
Attention to Learning Opportunities, and Technical Skills in In-
formation Seeking)
8. Rapid changes in science require constant updating of knowl-
edge and development of new professional skills.
9. I routinely attend continuing education programs to improve
client/patient care.
10. I routinely search computer databases to find out about new
developments in my specialty.
Note. Each item is rated on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to
5 (strongly agree), with higher scores indicating greater levels of
perceived competence. This empirically driven assessment in-
cludes three subscales (foundational, functional, and continuing
competencies), and builds from the theoretical literature of
Rodolfa et al. (2005) and Fouad et al. (2009).
Received September 13, 2018
Revision received October 28, 2018
Accepted November 8, 2018 䡲