Placing dental clinicians within the normative base regarding vicarious response

This paper describes the development and psychometric properties of the Curtin Vicarious Response Scales (CVRS), a research tool specifically developed to evaluate emotional reponsivity in clinical practice and in undergraduate training. The measure yields scores on three substantive scales, (I) Perspective Taking, the capacity to shift perspectives and to step outside of self when dealing with other people, (II) Empathy, the ability to understand another's mental and emotional states and (III) Emotional Lability, affective sensitivity and changeability. The construct validity of the CVRS is unequivocal and concurrent validation demonstrates its expected place within personality space. The psychometric properties of the device demonstrate its viability as a research tool in the area of Empathy and Emotional Responsivity.