A self-rating scale to measure tridoṣas in children

Abstract

Background:Self – rating inventories to assess the Prakṛti (constitution) and personality have been developed and validated for adults. To analyze the effect of personality development programs on Prakṛti of the children, standardized scale is not available. Hence, present study was carried out to develop and standardize Caraka Child Personality inventory (CCPI).Materials and Methods:The 77- item CCPI scale was developed on the basis of translation of Sanskrit verses describing vātaja (a), pittaja (b) and kaphaja prakṛti (c) characteristics described in Ayurveda texts and by taking the opinions of 5 Ayurveda experts and psychologists. The scale was administered on children of the age group 8-12 years in New Generation National public school, Bangalore.Results:This inventory was named CCPI and showed excellent internal consistency. The Cronbach's alpha for A, B and C scales were 0.54, 0.64 and 0.64 respectively. The Split - Half reliability scores for A, B and C subscales were 0.64. 0.60 and 0.66 respectively. Factor validity coefficient Scores on each item was above 0.4. Scores on vātaja, pittaja and kaphaja scales were inversely correlated. Test-retest reliability scores for A,B and C scales were 0.87,0.88 and 0.89 respectively. The result of CCPI was compared with a parent rating scale Ayurveda Child Personality Inventory (ACPI). Subscales of CCPI correlated significantly highly (above 0.80) with subscales of ACPI which was done for the purpose of cross-validation with respect to ACPI.Conclusions:The prakṛti of the children can be measured consistently by this scale. Correlations with ACPI pointed toward concurrent validity.

Significance of arterial stiffness in Tridosha analysis: A pilot study

“…In the recent past there is a growing research interest in studying prakriti in an objective manner with the help of prakriti assessment tools [9] as Ayurvedic physicians have agreed the need for research based standardized tool for prakriti assessment [10] . The standardized questionnaires such as Sushrutha Prakriti Inventory (SPI) [11] , Caraka Child Personality Inventory [12] , Mysore Tridosha Scale [13] have shown significant results in prakriti assessment. Recent studies on genetics with help of prakriti questionnaires have shown that prakriti and genes are closely associated which emphasizes the significance of questionnaires in assessing prakriti [14] , [15] , [16] , [17] .…”