Development and Psychometric Validation of a Digital Instrument for Assessing Democratic Attitudes Among Secondary School Students

Abstract

The rapid advancement of digital technology has transformed educational assessment practices, creating opportunities to develop more efficient and accessible instruments for evaluating students' civic competencies. However, the availability of psychometrically sound digital instruments specifically designed to assess democratic attitudes among secondary school students remains limited. This study aimed to develop and validate a digital instrument for assessing democratic attitudes among secondary school students by examining its psychometric properties, including construct validity and internal consistency reliability. The study employed a research and development approach involving 337 secondary school students from multiple schools in Indonesia who participated in the field testing of the instrument. The proposed instrument comprised 35 Likert-scale items representing six dimensions of democratic attitudes: participation, rights and freedom, tolerance, accountability, justice, and responsibility. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, item analysis, construct validity procedures, and reliability testing based on psychometric principles. The findings demonstrated that the digital instrument exhibited satisfactory psychometric performance, with items showing acceptable validity and strong internal consistency across all dimensions. The multidimensional structure effectively represented the construct of democratic attitudes, while the digital format facilitated efficient administration and automated data collection. These results indicate that the instrument is a valid and reliable tool for measuring democratic attitudes among secondary school students. The study contributes to the advancement of digital educational assessment by providing a psychometrically validated instrument that can support teachers, researchers, and policymakers in evaluating democratic attitudes and promoting evidence-based civic education practices in secondary schools.