Urdu Translation of the California Inventory for Family Assessment for Use in Pakistan

Abstract

In the absence of indigenously developed valid measures to study constructs related to marriage and family in Pakistan, the most economical way is to translate and adapt an instrument that has already been validated in other cultures. The purpose of this study was to translate into Urdu language and pilot test a measure of dyadic relationship behavior, the California Inventory for Family Assessment (CIFA; Werner & Green, 1999-2008). Brislin’s (1970) back translation method was employed. Our translation/backtranslation process is summarized in detail. Face validity and content validity were addressed by use of a committee of judges as well as by interviewing and pilot testing on 15 married couples. The translated version proved to be equivalent to the original version in semantic, idiomatic, experiential and conceptual domains. Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients as well as inter-spouse validity correlations indicate that most constructs measured by CIFA were applicable in the cultural context of Pakistan. However, subscales with weak reliability and validity results in the pilot study need to be explored further to better understand their suitability for research in Pakistan.