Abstract

The Problem. The purpose of the study was to initiate the process of determining the validity and reliability of the Experience, Understanding, Reflection, Decision Function Indicator developed by the researcher for measuring four function bases. The study investigated the following questions: to what degree do the words drawn from Bernard Lonergan's writings to be used in the EURD Function Indicator validly represent his four functions of experience, understanding, reflection, and decision; to what degree do the words taken from Roget's International Thesaurus and The Merriam-Webster Pocket Dictionary of Synonyms for use in the EURD Function Indicator validly represent Lonergan's four functions; to what degree are the items of the EURD Function Indicator reliable to a sample of psychotherapists; to what degree do the items of the EURD Function Indicator have validity as a measurement of Lonergan's four functions in the consciousness of the psychotherapist; to what degree do the items of the EURD Function Indicator measure the same function? ;Method. Bernard Lonergan matched descriptions contained in the EURD Function Indicator with corresponding function base categories. Five panelists completed a synonym test matching words with Lonergan's four functions. Ten graduate students of psychology judged the similarity of meaning between items of parallel forms of the EURD. Forty-six psychotherapists/counselors completed two equivalent alternate forms of the EURD. ;Results. Lonergan achieved 82 percent agreement when matching descriptions to function base category titles. The five panelists' matching of synonyms with Lonergan's four categories and associated words obtained an overall agreement of 93 percent. Ten expert judges' evaluations of item similarity resulted in all the percentages falling beween 3 and 5 with an overall average item similarity of 4.23 . The forty-six psychotherapists' or counselors' scores on the EURD achieved an overall average percentage of agreement of 83 percent between Form A and Form B