Although earlier versions of the SDTLA were designed primarily as tools to assess and facilitate the growth and development of individual college students, this version, because of its improved psychometric properties, has utility as a research tool as well. A number of limitations and precautions should be exercised when using the SDTLA for research and evaluation purposes, however.

• Because of the relatively low Alpha Coefficients for some subtasks, viz., Cultural Participation (CUP), Tolerance (TOL), and Emotional Autonomy (EA), the more reliable measures appear to be total task scores. Caution should be exercised when reporting subtask or scale results for small samples.


• It is unrealistic to expect to find statistically significant differences on tasks, subtasks, or scales (using pretest, posttest designs) when short-term programs or intentionally structured group experiences are the treatment. A more realistic approach, when evaluating the impact of short-term programs, would be to analyze each item separately within a given task, subtask or scale. The information gained thereby gives a much more accurate picture of exactly what specific behaviors were reported to have changed. Another approach is to utilize a time series design that collects data prior to beginning the intervention and several times after the intervention has been completed. A workshop, for instance, may have a major impact on participants only months later when skills and knowledge are actually implemented.


• Since the SDTLA is a self-report instrument and lends itself to a social desirability response set, the means of presentation and the trust level present should be carefully considered when designing research projects. Means of gaining rapport between students and the evaluators should be carefully and explicitly built into the research plan.


• Built into the Inventory is a Response Bias Scale (RB), which researchers can use to verify the existence of response bias. It is recommended that data from Inventories in which three or more RB scale items are answered in the keyed direction not be used for research or evaluation purposes.


• When using the SDTLA to assess developmental needs in a general survey of student bodies or sub-populations, analysis of each item separately is recommended. Each of the 140 items (excluding RB Scale items) on the Inventory reflects a specific behavior or attitude associated with college students'; development or lifestyles. Such an item analysis approach should generate the maximum amount of data available to guide designs of programs to address directly the developmental needs of students.

Using the Online Form for Research and Evaluation

When using the online form for research and evaluation purposes it is advisable to have students sign in using a username and a password. In this way researchers can link institutional data (admissions test scores, course data, out of classroom activities etc.) with SDTLA scores. If one is undertaking a pretest/postest study, identifying information is essential. When a student signs in it is not required that he/she complete the inventory in one sitting. A student who is interrupted while completing the inventory can sign in again later and will be returned to where he/she left off.

A researcher would simply submit a list of email addresses of the students to be surveyed. SDTLA staff would send the students an email message inviting them to complete the survey and issuing them a unique password. Student would use this password along with their email address to gain access to the survey.