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Neighborhood Cohesion Instrument

The Neighborhood Cohesion Instrument is an 18-item self-administered measure of psychological sense of community, attraction-to-neighborhood, and social interaction within a neighborhood.

Categories

Geographies Tested: United States of America

Populations Included: Female, Male

Age Range: Adults

Items:

1. Overall, I am very attracted to living in this neighborhood.
2. I feel like I belong to this neighborhood.
3. I visit with my neighbors in their homes.
4. The friendships and associations I have with other people in my neighborhood mean a lot to me.
5. Given the opportunity, I would like to move out of this neighborhood.*
6. If the people in my neighborhood were planning something, I'd think of it as something "we" were doing rather than "they" were doing.
7. If I needed advice about something I could go to someone in my neighborhood.
8. I think I agree with most people in my neighborhood about what is important in life.
9. I believe my neighbors would help me in an emergency.
10. I feel loyal to the people in my neighborhood.
11. I borrow things and exchange favors with my neighbors.
12. I would be willing to work together with others on something to improve my neighborhood.
13. I plan to remain a resident of this neighborhood for a number of years.
14. I like to think of myself as similar to the people who live in this neighborhood.
15. I rarely have neighbors over to my house to visit.*
16. A feeling of fellowship runs deep between me and other people in this neighborhood.
17. I regularly stop and talk with people in my neighborhood.
18. Living in this neighborhood gives me a sense of community.

Response Options:
Strongly agree- 1
Agree- 2
Neither agreenor disagree- 3
Disagree- 4
Strongly disagree-5

*Items are reverse scored

Scoring Procedures

Average scores are calculated to compute the total measure score.

Original Citation

Buckner, J. C. (1988). The development of an instrument to measure neighborhood cohesion. American Journal of Community Psychology, 16(6), 771-791. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00930892


Psychometric Score

Ease of Use Score

Scoring breakdown

Formative Research

Qualitative Research

Existing Literature/Theoretical Framework

Field Expert Input

Cognitive Interviews / Pilot Testing

Reliability

Internal

Test-retest

Interrater

Validity

Content

Face

Criterion (gold-standard)

Construct

KEY

Ease of Use

Readability

Scoring Clarity

Length

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