Welcome to Learn and Service Australia

Selfism Scale
Selfism places individuals somewhere between altruistic and egotistical based on their need to satisfy a range of situations. The Selfism scale presents a means of measuring changes in self concept over several domains of a person's life. Within the context of service-learning it provides some insight into community service challenges and potential for change in people.
Are you altruistic, egotistical or somewhere in between? Listed below are 40 statements dealing with personal attitudes and feelings about a variety of things. There are no right or wrong answers - only opinions.
				equally
		strongly	mildly	agree &	mildly	strongly
	Statements	agree	agree	disagree	disagree	disagree
1)	The widespread interest in professional sports is just another example of escapism
2)	In times of shortages it is sometimes necessary for one to engage in a little hoarding
3)	Thinking for yourself first is no sin in this world today
4)	The prospect of becoming very close to another person does not bother me
5)	The really significant contributions in the world have very frequently been made by people who were preoccupied with themselves
6)	Every older Australian deserves a guaranteed income to live in dignity
7)	The most important thing in life is to leave a legacy for other people, parents or posterity
8)	Organised religious groups are too concerned with raising funds these days
9)	I regard myself as someone who looks after his/her personal interests
10)	The trouble with getting too close to people is that they start making emotional demands on you
11)	Having children keeps you from engaging in a lot of self-fulfilling activities
12)	Many of our production problems in this country are due to the fact that workers no longer take pride in their jobs
13)	It is best to live for the present and not to worry about tomorrow
14)	Call it selfishness if you will, but in this world today we all have to look out for ourselves first
15)	Education is too job oriented these days; there is not enough emphasis on basic education
16)	It seems impossible to imagine the world without me in it
17)	You can hardly overestimate the importance of selling yourself in getting ahead
18)	The difficulty with marriage is that it locks you into a relationship
19)	Movies emphasise sex and violence too much
20)	If it feels right, it is right
21)	Taking breaks in life take precedence over pursuing your self interests aggressively
22)	An individual's worth will often pass unrecognised unless that person thinks of herself or himself first
23)	Consumers need a stronger voice in governmental affairs
24)	Getting ahead in life depends mainly on thinking of yourself first
25)	In general, couples should seek divorce when they find the marriage is not a fulfilling one
26)	Too often, voting means choosing between the lesser of two evils
27)	In striving to reach one's true potential, it is often necessary to show concern for other people
28)	When choosing clothes, I generally consider style before comfort or durability
29)	I believe people have the right to live any way they please
30)	Too many people have given up reading to passively watch TV
31)	Owing money is bad if it's the only way to live without depriving yourself of unnecessary extravagences
32)	Not enough people live for the present
33)	I don't see anything wrong with people spending a lot of time and effort on their personal appearance
34)	Physical punishment is necessary to raise children properly
35)	Volunteers Abroad is a good way to get started along the road to a personal career
36)	It simply does not pay to become sad or upset about friends, loved ones or events that don't turn out well
37)	Birth control devices have permitted sexual pleasure to replace any responsibilities for life
38)	Doctors seem to have forgotten that medicine involves human relations and not just prescriptions
39)	I believe that some unidentified flying objects have actually been sent from outer space to observe our culture on earth
40)	In this world one has to look out for others before worrying about oneself
LASA has reworded some of the questions to provide a more balanced survey. Thank you for taking the time to complete it.
Phares and Erskine (1984) The Measurement of Selfism, in The Measure of Service Learning, Bringle and others, 2004

Disclaimer
LASA is sympathetic to people who may feel impacted by Selfism and in no way intends to offend anyone by publishing this survey. If you believe you may be displaying extreme altruistic or egotistic characteristics that are affecting your life then please seek a qualified assessment.
TOP

Selfism Scale