The family nutrition and physical activity (FNPA) screening tool: psychometric characteristics, reliability, and validity in the Turkish population

Abstract

The objective of this study was to test whether the Family Nutrition and Physical Activity (FNPA) Screening Tool, which evaluates environmental risk factors affecting the occurrence of obesity in children, is valid and reliable in the Turkish population. We included 638 parents with children between the ages of 6 and 18 in 12 schools randomly determined in our city. A data form containing sociodemographic characteristics (14 questions) and the FNPA scale (20 questions) adapted to Turkish were applied to the parents. The validity of the scale was analyzed in terms of construct validity using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Reliability analysis was carried out by calculations using the internal consistency coefficient, the intraclass correlation coefficient, and corrected item total correlations. The intraclass correlation coefficient determined test–retest reliability. The internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) coefficient of the scale was 0.76 and the test–retest reliability correlation coefficient was 0.92 (p < 0.001). The 20-item FNPA scale displayed a five-factor construct and the confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a five-factor construct. It was determined that all factors explained 51% of the total variance of the scale and factor loadings varied between 0.32 and 0.82. Psychometric analysis results demonstrated that the Turkish version of the FNPA scale is a reliable and valid evaluation tool. The scale can be used for children aged between 6 and 18 years to evaluate family environments and combine information from various behaviors associated with childhood obesity.