Acceptable Validity Research Articles

Development of a brief, generic, modular resource-use measure (ModRUM): piloting with patients

BackgroundBespoke self-report resource-use measures (RUMs) are commonly developed or adapted for each new randomised controlled trial. Consequently, RUMs lack standardisation and validation is rarely conducted. A new generic RUM, ModRUM, has been developed using a rigorous process, including consultation with health economists and patients. ModRUM includes a concise core healthcare module, designed to be included in all trials, and depth-adding questions, which can replace or be added to core questions as needed. Modules covering other sectors are under development. The aim of this study was to test the acceptability, feasibility, and criterion and construct validity of the healthcare module of ModRUM.MethodsPatients who had a recent appointment at their GP practice were invited to complete ModRUM (core module or core module with depth questions), a characteristics form and the EQ-5D-5L. Acceptability was assessed via response rates and questionnaire completion time. Feasibility was assessed by reviewing issues observed in participants’ responses and question completion rates. Construct validity was tested via hypothesis testing and known-group analyses, using Wilcoxon rank-sum and Kruskal–Wallis tests, and a generalised linear model. Criterion validity was tested by comparing ModRUM results with primary care medical records. Sensitivity, specificity, and agreement using Lin’s concordance correlation coefficient (pc) were estimated.ResultsOne hundred patients participated from five GP practices in the South-West of England. Acceptability was higher for the core module (20% versus 10% response rate). Question completion rates were high across both versions (> 90%). Some support was observed for construct validity, with results suggesting that healthcare costs differ dependent on the number of long-term conditions (p < 0.05) and are negatively associated with health-related quality of life (p < 0.01). Sensitivity was high for all questions (> 0.83), while specificity varied (0.33–0.88). There was a good level of agreement for GP contacts and costs, and prescribed medication costs (pc > 0.6).ConclusionThis study provided preliminary evidence of the acceptability, feasibility, and criterion and construct validity of ModRUM. Further testing is required within trials and with groups that were less well represented in this study.

Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Spinocerebellar Ataxia: a Validation Study of the EQ-5D-3L

Although health-related quality of life (HRQoL) has developed into a crucial outcome parameter in clinical research, evidence of the EQ-5D-3L validation performance is lacking in patients with spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) types 1, 2, 3, and 6. The objective of this study is to assess the acceptability, validity, reliability, and responsiveness of the EQ-5D-3L. For n = 842 predominantly European SCA patients of two longitudinal cohort studies, the EQ-5D-3L, PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire), and ataxia-specific clinical assessments (SARA: Scale for Assessment and Rating of Ataxia; ADL: activities of daily living as part of Friedreich’s Ataxia Rating Scale; INAS: Inventory of Non-Ataxia Signs) were assessed at baseline and multiple annual follow-ups. The EQ-5D-3L was evaluated regarding acceptability, distribution properties, convergent and known-groups validity, test-retest reliability, and effect size measures to analyze health changes. The non-item response was low (EQ-5D-3L index: 0.8%; EQ-VAS: 3.4%). Ceiling effects occurred in 9.9% (EQ-5D-3L) and 3.0% (EQ-VAS) with a mean EQ-5D-3L index of 0.65 ± 0.21. In total, convergent validity showed moderate to strong Spearman’s rho (rs > 0.3) coefficients comparing EQ-5D-3L and EQ-VAS with PHQ-9, SARA, ADL, and INAS. EQ-5D-3L could discriminate between groups of age, SARA, ADL, and INAS. Intra-class correlation coefficients (EQ-5D-3LICC: 0.95/EQ-VASICC: 0.88) and Kappa statistics (range 0.44 to 0.93 for EQ-5D-3L items) indicated tolerable reliability. EQ-5D-3L shows small (effect size < 0.3) to moderate (effect size 0.3–0.59) health changes regarding ataxia severity. The analysis confirms an acceptable, reliable, valid, and responsive recommended EQ-5D-3L in SCA patients, measuring the HRQoL adequately, besides well-established clinical instruments.

DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF QUESTIONNAIRE FOR KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES AND SELF-EFFICACY ON ADULT CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION AMONG HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS

Cardiac arrest was Malaysia's highest cause of death for over two decades. All healthcare providers should be prepared to perform resuscitation, especially in an out-of-hospital setting. This research aimed to develop and validate a questionnaire to assess knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy on adult cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), known as the KAECPR questionnaire among healthcare providers, focusing on Assistant Medical Officers (AMOs), nurses, and midwives in an out-of-hospital setting. Sixty-one items were initially developed according to the latest Basic Life Support (BLS) guidelines and experts' consensus involving four sections: demographic data and three domains on knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy towards adult CPR. This questionnaire was assessed regarding content validity, face validity, and internal consistency reliability. The average of content validity index at scale level (S-CVI/Ave) and universal agreement of content validity index at scale level (S-CVI/UA) showed over 0.80 for all domains. For average index of face validity (S-FVI/Ave) and universal agreement index of face validity at scale level (S-FVI/UA) also showed more than 0.80, indicating that the items scale was clear, relevant, and understandable. All three domains showed Cronbach's alpha values of over 0.70, indicating it was a reliable instrument. This study demonstrated that the newly developed questionnaire had achieved acceptable content validity, face validity, and internal consistency reliability. Therefore, this instrument can be used to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy of AMOs, nurses, and midwives in Malaysia regarding out-of-hospital adult CPR. The questionnaire is recommended to be used with existing life support courses in Malaysia to enhance learning and concept-grasping among healthcare providers.

The Validation and Psychometric Properties of the Gaming Instinctual Motivation Scale.

Being able to quantify gaming motivation in a valid, systematic way has important implications for game designers and gaming user experience researchers. In the present study, we aimed to develop and validate a 30-item Gaming Instinctual Motivation Scale (GIMS) based on Dillon's 6-11 Framework on instinctual gaming motivation and Lazzaro's gaming experience model. To validate the scale, we recruited 194 regular gamers (Mage = 22.70 years old, SD = 4.38) to complete the GIMS based on their general gaming experience and their experience playing role-laying games (RPGs), first-person shooters (FPSs), real-time strategy, puzzle, and action games. We used a cross-validation approach and performed exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis to test the structure of the scale and the reliability and validity of the scale, respectively. The final version of the GIMS had a one-dimensional structure with 15 items. It also had good construct validity, χ2 (N = 117, df = 86) = 126.28, p = 0.003, CFI = 0.93, TLI = 0.92, and RMSEA = 0.064 (90% CI [0.04, 0.09]), and reliability (CR = 0.89), and an acceptable convergent validity (AVE = 0.35). The one-dimensional structure was generalizable to RPG and FPS games, demonstrating the applicability of the scale to these two gaming genres. Higher scores on the GIMS were also associated with a greater intention to play games.

Psychometric properties of Persian version of individual innovativeness scale among nursing students: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundOne of the basic necessities for fostering innovation in nursing students is to study the level of individual innovation using an appropriate tool. This study was conducted with the aim of translation and psychometric analysis of 20-item individual innovativeness scale (IIS) developed by Hurt et al., among Iranian nursing students.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was performed on 140 nursing students between September 2020 and June 2021 in one of the southern cities of Iran. IIS was translated through forward-backward method, and its face validity and content validity were examined quantitatively and qualitatively. Then, its construct validity was measured by exploratory factor analysis, and its stability and internal consistency were examined.ResultsThe evidence of qualitative face validity and content validity of IIS were observed. The impact score was higher than 1.5, content validity ratio was between 0.6 and 1, content validity index was between 0.8 and 1, and SCVI-Average was 0.91. Based on exploratory factor analysis, three sub-scales were extracted that explained 55.49% of the changes in the questions. Cronbach’s alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient were 0.880 and 0.949, respectively.ConclusionThe Persian version of IIS had acceptable validity and reliability. Therefore, it can be used to assess the level of individual innovation among nursing students and planning interventions in this field. In addition, nursing education researchers can also use this tool for descriptive and interventional studies in the field of individual innovation in nursing students.

Reliability and validation of the Chinese version of the epilepsy surgery satisfaction questionnaire

ObjectiveTo evaluate the reliability and validity the Chinese version of 19-item Epilepsy Surgery Satisfaction Questionnaire (C-ESSQ-19) in Chinese mainland patients. MethodsPatients with epilepsy who had epilepsy surgery in our hospital one year earlier were included. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were assessed by using Cronbach alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Confirmatory factor analysis was used for construct validity. Discriminant validity was assessed using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. ResultsA total of 132 patients participated in our study, consisting of 59 females and 73 males. The C-ESSQ-19 yielded a median summary score of 86.5 (IQR=72.7-98.0). The Cronbach’s alpha of the four domains of the C-ESSQ-19 ranged from 0.746 to 0.973. The test-retest reliability evaluated by ICC were good to excellent, ranging from 0.71 to 0.90 (P < 0.001). The C-ESSQ-19 demonstrated excellent construct validity, as indicated by the satisfactory goodness-of-fit of the data (SRMR = 0.046; CFI = 1.000). It exhibited acceptable discriminant validity for differentiating between patients excised or not (AUC = 0.72; 95% CI = 0.59-0.86) and self-rated severity of epilepsy (AUC = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.67-0.86), but poor discriminant validity for other factors, such as being seizure-free or not (AUC = 0.66, CI = 0.56-0.75), depressed or not (AUC = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.54-0.79), and self-rated disability related to seizures (AUC = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.50-0.80). ConclusionsThe C-ESSQ-19 has proven to be a reliable and valid self-rated questionnaire for assessing the satisfaction of Chinese mainland epilepsy patients with surgery.

Psychometric Evaluation of the Receptive Picture Vocabulary Test for Persian-speaking Children

Background and Objectives: Measuring children’s receptive vocabulary skills requires the use of valid and reliable tools. This study aims to assess the reliability of the receptive picture vocabulary test for Persian-speaking children (RPVT-P). Methods: In the first phase of this cross-sectional, descriptive, and analytical study, 434 normal children aged 30 to 71 months participated. In the second phase of the study, 2 groups participated, 16 children with Down syndrome (DS) a mentally age-matched typically developing (TD) peers. The internal consistency (Cronbach’s α coefficient), construct validity, and discriminant validity of the RPVT-P was evaluated. Results: Cronbach’s α was calculated as 0.825, indicating good internal consistency for the total score of the RPVT-P. The Spearman correlation coefficient of 0.83 showed a positive correlation between age and the total score of the RPVT-P (P=0.0000). The correlation between most of the subtest scores and the total score of the RPVT-P was found from 0.70 to 0.87, showing acceptable construct validity. A significant difference was observed between the DS and TD groups for the total scores of the RPVT-P (P=0.0000), indicating good discriminant validity of the RPVT-P. Conclusion: The RPVT-P is a test with acceptable validity and reliability to determine the ability of preschool Persian-speaking children in receptive vocabulary.

Responsiveness of the Persian Version of Forgotten Joint Score-12 Questionnaire After Lower Limb Surgery

Background and Objectives: The Persian version of the forgotten joint score-12 (FJS-12) questionnaire with acceptable reliability and validity is used to measure the extent of awareness of the joint and the ability of the patient in forgetting the involved joint. This study aims to evaluate the responsiveness of the Persian version of FJS-12 among Persian-speaking subjects following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery, total knee arthroplasty (TKA), and total hip arthroplasty (THA). Methods: Twenty-five candidates for ACL surgery, 54 subjects with TKA, and 33 subjects with THA participated in this study. They filled the FJS-12 and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC) questionnaires before the surgery and 7 weeks after surgery as well as after physiotherapy. For analysis, receiving operator characteristic (ROC) method and gamma correlation coefficient were used. Results: The receiving ROC area under the curve (AUC) for FJS-12 and WOMAC index was 0.77 for both, this meant acceptable value, and minimal clinically important change (MCIC) was 32.45 for FJS-12. Finally, the gamma correlation coefficient of the questionnaire was estimated at an average of 0.5. Conclusion: The FJS-12 questionnaire has acceptable responsiveness that can be used to evaluate the therapeutic effects in clinical settings.

Validity and Reproducibility of Food Group-Based Food Frequency Questionnaires in Assessing Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Habits among Chinese Middle-School Students.

Assessing the intake of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is crucial for reducing obesity; however, a simple but relatively accurate method for determining added sugar consumption among school adolescents is lacking. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reproducibility and validity of a food group-based food frequency questionnaire (FG-FFQ) for SSBs in assessing SSB consumption and added sugar among middle-school students. A total of 242 school students completed the FG-FFQs twice and four discontinuous 24-h dietary records (24HDR) over a three-month period. A weighted average approach was used to obtain the average sugar content in the sugary drink food group (FG). Correlation coefficient, weighted kappa statistic, misclassification analysis, and Bland-Altman plot were used to evaluate the validity and reproducibility of the FG-FFQ. Linear regression was utilized to obtain the calibration formulas. The average content of added sugar in sugary drink FG was 8.1 g/100 mL. SSB consumption frequency, consumption amount, and added sugar had correlation coefficients of 0.81, 0.87, and 0.87, respectively, in the validity analysis (p < 0.05). The majority of scatter plots were covered by 95% confidence intervals in the Bland-Altman bias analysis. The intra-class correlation coefficient of SSB consumption frequency and Spearman correlation coefficient of SSB consumption amount and added sugar were 0.74, 0.81, and 0.90, respectively, in the reproducibility analysis (p < 0.05). Results produced by the FG-FFQ calibration formula were more comparable to 24HDR. The FG-FFQ for SSB consumption showed acceptable validity and reproducibility, making it a viable instrument for epidemiological studies on sugary drinks in adolescents.

Development and evaluation of a Chinese short-form of the Sleep-related Behaviors Questionnaire in Hong Kong Chinese adults using item response theory.

Insomnia-related safety behaviors are behaviors that aim to mitigate the negative consequences of insomnia but inadvertently perpetuate insomnia. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a Chinese short-form of the sleep-related behavior questionnaire (SRBQ-SF), a self-report measure of insomnia-related safety behaviors, using item response theory. The Chinese version of the original SRBQ was completed by 536 Chinese-speaking adults with clinically significant insomnia. The automatic item selection procedure of the Mokken scaling analysis was used to develop and evaluate the SRBQ-SF. A 23-item SRBQ-SF consisting of a 14-item reduced engagement and avoidance subscale (SRBQ-REA) and a 9-item preoccupation with sleep subscale (SRBQ-PS) was derived. Classical test theory-based estimates showed that the SRBQ-REA and SRBQ-PS had good internal consistency and acceptable convergent and discriminant validities, and they were only weakly correlated with each other. We recommend the use of the SRBQ-REA and SRBQ-PS separately to assess two dimensions of safety behaviors in the study and treatment of insomnia in Chinese-speaking adults.

Developing Inventory of The International Education Cooperation for Chinese College Students

This study was initially designed to develop and validate the international education cooperation inventory of Chinese college students, by conducting expert review and a survey of 91 Chinese students. In the first phase, an initial pool of 11 items were generated based on concept analysis and a literature review. Moreover, the content was validated and reviewed by international cooperation experts in the field of higher education. The evaluation in the second phase consisted of an item analysis and an exploratory factor analysis. Following the development process, one item was removed due to low discrimination after performing the item analysis, and the questionnaire was finalized with 10 in 2 dimensions, which are overseas and domestic international cooperations with acceptable reliability and validity. It was found that most of the participants completed the questionnaire without difficulty in about 1-2 minutes, it can be claimed that the IEC is an easy-to-use questionnaire that can be applied in future studies.

Development and Validation of the Bullied Cognitions Inventory (BCI)

BackgroundBullying increases risk of social anxiety and can produce symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). According to cognitive models, these are maintained by unhelpful beliefs, which are therefore assessed and targeted in cognitive therapy. This paper describes psychometric validation of a new measure of beliefs related to bullying experiences.MethodsIn an online survey of 1879 young people before starting university or college in the UK, 1279 reported a history of bullying (N = 1279), and 854 rated their agreement with beliefs about self and others related to bullying experiences and completed symptom measures of social anxiety and PTSD related to bullying. An empirical structure for a Bullied Cognitions Inventory was established using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and assessed using model fit statistics and tests of reliability and validity.ResultsFifteen items clustered into four themes: “degraded in the eyes of others”, “negative interpretations of reactions to bullying”, “recognisable as a bullying victim” and “social defeat”. The measure has acceptable reliability and validity and, accounting for existing cognitive measures, explained additional variance in symptoms of PTSD but not social anxiety.ConclusionsThe Bullied Cognitions Inventory (BCI) is a valid and reliable tool for measuring cognitions related to bullying. It may be useful in therapy for identifying and monitoring unhelpful cognitions in those who were bullied.

Embracing Diversity in the Educational Landscape: Resource Supply and Inclusive Education in Secondary Schools

Several studies have examined the challenges affecting the smooth implementation of inclusive education; focusing on resource inadequacies. However, these studies primarily relied on descriptive statistics: describing resource availability but not assessing their impact on policy implementation. The current study addresses this gap by analysing the extent of critical resource supply for implementing inclusive education and its influence on policy implementation. A descriptive survey design was adopted, targeting 281 principals from public secondary schools across three educational zones in Cross River State. Stratified proportionate sampling was used in selecting 120 principals as the sample. Data collection involved a structured questionnaire with an acceptable validity and a reliability indices. Descriptive statistics were used to answer the research questions, and Simple and multiple linear regression were used to test the hypotheses at the .05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed low supply levels of physical, human, and financial resources for implementing inclusive education in secondary schools. The extent of inclusive education implementation was also found to be low. The study further indicated that the supply of physical, human, and financial resources collectively affected policy implementation, with physical resources having a greater impact. These results have practical implications for the government and stakeholders; emphasising the need for adequate physical, human, and financial resources to implement inclusive education in secondary schools.&#x0D; &#x0D; Received: 9 July 2023 / Accepted: 23 August 2023 / Published: 5 September 2023

Fraud Detection in Healthcare Insurance Claims Using Machine Learning

Healthcare fraud is intentionally submitting false claims or producing misinterpretation of facts to obtain entitlement payments. Thus, it wastes healthcare financial resources and increases healthcare costs. Subsequently, fraud poses a substantial financial challenge. Therefore, supervised machine and deep learning analytics such as random forest, logistic regression, and artificial neural networks are successfully used to detect healthcare insurance fraud. This study aims to develop a health model that automatically detects fraud from health insurance claims in Saudi Arabia. The model indicates the greatest contributing factor to fraud with optimal accuracy. The labeled imbalanced dataset used three supervised deep and machine learning methods. The dataset was obtained from three healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia. The applied models were random forest, logistic regression, and artificial neural networks. The SMOT technique was used to balance the dataset. Boruta object feature selection was applied to exclude insignificant features. Validation metrics were accuracy, precision, recall, specificity, F1 score, and area under the curve (AUC). Random forest classifiers indicated policy type, education, and age as the most significant features with an accuracy of 98.21%, 98.08% precision, 100% recall, an F1 score of 99.03%, specificity of 80%, and an AUC of 90.00%. Logistic regression resulted in an accuracy of 80.36%, 97.62% precision, 80.39% recall, an F1 score of 88.17%, specificity of 80%, and an AUC of 80.20%. ANN revealed an accuracy of 94.64%, 98.00% precision, 96.08% recall, an F1 score of 97.03%, a specificity of 80%, and an AUC of 88.04%. This predictive analytics study applied three successful models, each of which yielded acceptable accuracy and validation metrics; however, further research on a larger dataset is advised.

Preliminary Data: Powered Mobility Intervention With Language Monitoring for Children With Cerebral Palsy

Purpose: Adapted ride-on cars offer an affordable mobility intervention that provides broader access to a child's environment. Such newfound independence is a unique opportunity to examine changes in environmental language and communicative participation as children acquire mobility. New technologies such as the Language Environmental Analysis (LENA) system hold promise for evaluating naturalistic language interactions but have not yet been applied to children with cerebral palsy with physical and/or communication impairments. This study sought to use LENA with a sample of children with cerebral palsy to determine the feasibility of monitoring environmental language patterns during longitudinal mobility intervention. Method: LENA's adult word counts, conversational turns, and child vocalizations were compared across three time points for participants aged 16–49 months with a range of communication skills (indexed by Communication Function Classification System Levels I–IV). Results: Feasibility was established with acceptable criterion validity during active drive time. Results had large effect sizes, likely diluted by sample size and heterogeneity. Conclusions: Limitations include small sample size, nonprescriptive use of powered mobility devices, and lack of control group. Future studies should incorporate these features to more closely examine communication patterns.

Construction and Assessment of the Psychometric Characteristics of the Sahm-based Lifestyle Questionnaire

Aim: The present research was conducted with the purpose of designing and determining some psychometric characteristics of the Sahm-based lifestyle questionnaire, and this study was done with a practical goal. Methods: The statistical population of the research included all people aged 18 to 60 living in Tehran in 2023, of which 389 people were selected through available sampling and answered the questionnaire. In order to check the validity of the questionnaire, the method of exploratory factor analysis was used, and the content validity of the instrument was confirmed by consulting experts. In order to check the reliability of the tool, Cronbach's alpha method was used. All statistical analyzes were performed by SPSS-25 software. Findings: Based on the findings of the research, exploratory factor analysis with principal components showed that the Sahm-based lifestyle questionnaire is a 13-component tool that explains 57.24 percent of the “Sahmgozari” (partake or sharing) variance. Cronbach's alpha of the whole questionnaire is 0.93 and for components such as meaning-based (0.78), responsibility-based (0.74), agency (0.73), security-based (0.71), principle-based (0.73), respect-based (0.71), intention-based (0.73) , personal peace (0.80), the best role-playing (0.72), formative relationships (0.67), bond-making (0.63), harmonization with goals (0.63), and selectiveness (0.65) were reported. Conclusion: According to the findings, it can be concluded that the Sahm-based lifestyle questionnaire has appropriate and acceptable validity and reliability in the sample of participants in the research.

Psychometric properties and factor structure of the diabetes eatıng problem survey- revised (DEPS-R) among adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Background and objectiveAlthough many studies on the Diabetes Eating Problem Survey–Revised (DEPS-R) in adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D), the number of studies validating this questionnaire in adults with T1D is limited. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the factor structure of the Turkish version of the DEPS-R in adults with T1D and internal consistency and construct validity.MethodsA total of 100 patients with T1D, ages 18–50 years, completed the DEPS-R and EDE-Q. In addition to tests of validity, confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to investigate the factor structure of the 6-item Turkish version of DEPS-R.ResultsThe Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the DEPS-R Turkish version was 0.77, suggesting good internal consistency. The median (IQ) DEPS-R score was 15.0 (13.0) among all participants. DEPS-R score was significantly correlated with BMI (r = 0.210; p < 0.05) and EDE-Q (r = 0.586; p < 0.01). There was no correlation between the HbA1c values of participants and neither EDE-Q nor DEPS-R scores. The confirmatory factor analysis results show that the three-factor model was a good fit.ConclusionA short, self-administered diabetes-specific screening tool for disordered eating behavior is recommended be used routinely in the clinical care of adults with T1D, and Turkish version of DEPS-R has acceptable internal consistency and construct validity in adults with T1D.Level of evidenceLevel V, descriptive study.Clinicaltrials.gov registration number NCT05346679/ 21.04.2022 (retrospectively registered)

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of the Ageism Scale

Background: Aging is often defined as a reduction in productivity, ability, and independence. A crucial step in combating ageism is to thoroughly categorize the scale of ageism through appropriate psychometric methods. Therefore, Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the ageism scale of Vefikuluçay Yilmaz and Terzioglu. Methods: This descriptive and psychometric study was conducted on 230 (13 - 63) individuals in the fall of 2021 in Tehran, Iran, who were selected by convenient method. Construct validity was performed by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis after the face and content validity. The tool reliability was also examined by the internal consistency and reliability method. Results: Content validity indicators for the whole questionnaire were content validity ratio (CVR) = 0.72 and content validity index (CVI) = 0.64. The KMO test rate was 0.835, and Bartlett’s test was also significant (df = 253, P &lt; 0.001). Four factors were extracted from the exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, including "dignity of older adults in the family," "restriction of older adults," "social presence," and "characteristics of older adults," which explained 30.57% of the total variance of ageism. The tool’s reliability was obtained using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.72 and intra-cluster correlation coefficient (ICC) = 0.94. In addition, the measurement model in confirmatory factor analysis had a moderate fit (root-mean-square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.081, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.610, goodness of fit (GFI) = 0.850). Conclusions: The Persian version of the ageism scale of Vefikuluçay Yilmaz and Terzioglu had acceptable validity and reliability in the Iranian population, and it is a tool for measuring people’s attitudes toward the phenomenon of aging.

Psychometric Evaluation of the Farsi Version of the Surgical Anxiety Questionnaire

PurposeThe aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Farsi version of the Surgical Anxiety Questionnaire. DesignCross-sectional study. MethodsThis study was performed on 402 patients who were candidates for elective surgery in Mashhad [East Iran) hospitals in winter 2021. After forward-backward translation, face and content validity checks were performed qualitatively. The construct validity was assessed by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Data analysis was performed with SPSS 16 and AMOS 26. FindingsIn exploratory factor analysis, two factors were extracted: concerns about surgery and anesthesia; and postdischarge concerns, which explained 52% of the total variance. The Cronbach's alpha for the entire questionnaire was 0.91 and for the subscales ranged from 0.80 to 0.87. The final model had a good fit as determined by confirmatory factor analysis. ConclusionsThe Farsi version of the surgical anxiety questionnaire has acceptable validity and reliability. The existence of this scale measuring domain-specific anxiety allows for further research in this area.

Measurement Invariance and Psychometric Evaluation of the Tendency to Avoid Physical Activity and Sport Scale (TAPAS) Among Mainland Chinese University Students.

Preventative factors in young people's physical inactivity require further understanding, including related psychosocial factors (eg, body image and weight stigma). The Tendency to Avoid Physical Activity and Sport Scale (TAPAS) is a recently developed instrument to address this issue and the present study examined its psychometric properties among Chinese university students particularly in relation to patterns across sex, physical activity (PA) level, and weight status. Using a convenience sample of 3142 students (mean age = 19.8 years; 56% female) in mainland China, data were collected using an online survey between August and October 2022. Psychometric instruments including the Weight Bias Internalization Scale, 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, and International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form were administered along with the TAPAS to assess convergent and discriminant validity. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) assessed the measurement invariance across specific groups. The unidimensional structure of the scale was confirmed through CFA (CFI=0.995; RMSEA=0.046). All configural, metric and scalar models of invariance indicated that the scale was invariant across sex, PA level, and weight status. Acceptable convergent and discriminant validity for the scale were found. The TAPAS is a suitable instrument to assess body image and weight stigma concerns for avoiding physical activity and sport among Chinese university students.