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- About
Shift and Persist (Child)
Factor: Power and Autonomy
Age: Child
Duration: Less than 3 minutes
Reading Level: Less than 6th grade
What
The Shift-and-Persist Scale has 5 items that measure two strategies for dealing with stressful situations: shifting, which means accepting stress and getting used to it; and persisting, which means being optimistic and finding purpose in tough times.
Who
Researchers used the scale with a large group of students, aged 9-15, from different racial and ethnic backgrounds, including Black and Latinx (Kallem et al., 2013). The study included students living on a low income who were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.
How
INSTRUCTIONS
Respondents use a 4-point scale (1 = not at all; 4 = a lot) to express how often they use different coping strategies. Researchers calculate a total shift-and-persist score by adding the score of all items together. Scores range between 0 and 20, with higher scores indicating greater use of shift-and-persist strategies.
Scale Items
Shift
“I think about the things I can learn from a situation, or about something good that can come from it.”
“I tell myself that everything will be all right.”
“I do something to calm myself down.”
Persist
“I think that things will get better in the future.”
“I feel my life has a sense of purpose.”
RESPONSE FORMAT
1 = not at all; 2 = a little; 3 = some; 4 = a lot.
Instructions: Here is a list of things that people sometimes do, think, or feel when something stressful happens. Please rate how much you do the following things.
1. I think about the things I can learn from a situation, or about something good that can come from it.
2. I tell myself that everything will be all right.
3. I do something to calm myself down.
Instructions: How much do the following statements describe you.
4. I think that things will get better in the future.
5. I feel my life has a sense of purpose.
Why It Matters
Low socioeconomic status is associated with health problems, including obesity. However, research suggests that the “shift-and-persist” style of coping may prevent low-income children from becoming obese. One study found that, among children from low-income backgrounds, only those who didn’t use shift-and-persist strategies had high Body Mass Index (BMI) scores (Kallem et al., 2013). Obesity, 21(9), 1759-1763.
HEADS UP
This is a cross-sectional study. Therefore, researchers do not know if shift-and-persist strategies cause lower BMI scores for students who live on a low income.
References
Kallem, S., Carroll-Scott, A., Rosenthal, L., Chen, E., Peters, S. M., McCaslin, C., & Ickovics, J. R. (2013). Shift‐and‐persist: A protective factor for elevated BMI among low‐socioeconomic‐status children. Obesity, 21(9), 1759-1763.
