[Assessing functional health and sociability of aged persons: the development and validation of two guttman-scales (author's transl)].

Studies to develop and validate two Guttman-scales are reported, which aim at measuring level of functional health and inclination to engage in social contacts in aged persons. A first scale analysis, based on the answers of 150 old persons, resulted in two, 12-item scales, which according to Guttman's criterion were fully satisfying. In two consecutive studies Guttman-selfratings of two other samples of old people were validated against ratings of experts, who disposed of profound knowledge of the sampled persons (a physician of a nursing home, managers of homes for the aged). A second scale analysis was performed, too. The results, especially the very significant correlations between expert ratings and selfassessments, suggest a broader application of at least the functional health scale. It is proposed to use the scales, if one aims at increasing the fit between individual needs and amount of services provided, and as instruments to control for sample characteristics, if different care programs are evaluated.