Introduction
Impulsiveness refers to the state of mind in which one makes decisions without much thinking. A good example of this is an impulse buy (buying something you later realise you do not really need).
Of course, some level of impulsiveness is normal in children and adults, after all, we make many decisions quickly and automatically. That said, there is variability in the level of impulsiveness, and that is exactly what tests such as the DSIS-C measure.
The ISC (Tsukayama, Duckworth, & Kim, 2013) distinguishes between impulsivity in different domains, namely interpersonal and schoolwork related impulsivity.
In a study with 453 children (mean age 12.5 years), the average scores were as follows1:
| Scale | Average score (on a range from 1-5) | Standard Deviation |
|---|---|---|
Overall score |
2.46 |
0.90 |
Schoolwork impulsivity score |
2.39 |
0.95 |
Interpersonal impulsivity score |
2.55 |
1.14 |
1These scores were kindly provided by Eli Tsukayama.
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Legal stuff
The DSIS-C can be used for research, but you need to acknowledge the authors and their research paper when writing about it (Tsukayama, Duckworth, & Kim, 2013).
Technically
This is a simple scale question.
The survey code for PsyToolkit
scale: isc
- Almost never
- About once a month
- About 2-3 times a month
- About once a week
- At least once a day
l: isc
t: scale isc
q: Here are a number of statements that may or may not apply to you.<br>
For the most accurate score, when responding,<br>
think of how you compare to most people --<br>
not just the people you know well, but most people in the world.<br><br>
There are no right or wrong answers, so just answer honestly!<br><br>
For the following statements, please indicate how often you did the following
during the past school year:<br>
- I forgot something I needed for class.
- I interrupted other students while they were talking.
- I said something rude.
- I couldn't find something because my desk, locker, or bedroom was messy.
- I lost my temper at home or at school.
- I did not remember what my teacher told me to do.
- My mind wandered when I should have been listening.
- I talked back to my teacher or parent when I was upset.
l: overall_impulsivity
t: set
- mean $isc
l: schoolwork_impulsivity
t: set
- mean $isc.1 $isc.4 $isc.6 $isc.7
l: interpersonal_impulsivity
t: set
- mean $isc.2 $isc.3 $isc.5 $isc.8
l: feedback
t: info
q: Scores on the Impulsiveness Scale for Children (ISC) fall in the range 1 to 5.<br><br>
Your scores on the ISC:<br>
Overall impulsivity score: {$overall_impulsivity}<br>
Schoolwork impulsivity score: {$schoolwork_impulsivity}<br>
Interpersonal impulsivity score: {$interpersonal_impulsivity}<br>
References
-
Tsukayama, E., Duckworth, A.L. & Kim, B. (2013). Domain-specific impulsivity in school-age children. Developmental Science, 16, 879-893.