Alpha Internal Consistency Coefficient Research Articles

Adaptation of the Attitudes Toward Motherhood Scale to Turkish: Reliability and Validity Study.

The aim of this study is to investigate the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Attitudes Toward Motherhood Scale. Attitudes Toward Motherhood Scale was developed by Sockol et al to evaluate cognitive distortions and attitudes toward motherhood during pregnancy and the postpartum period. The sample of this study consisted of 223 pregnant women and 138 postpartum women. A Sociodemographic Data Form, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, and Attitudes Toward Motherhood Scale were used to collect data from the participants. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for internal consistency was 0.868 for the entire sample, 0.877 during pregnancy, and 0.828 for the postpartum period. Factor analysis revealed that the 3-factor structure explained 68.93% of the variance. Pearson's correlation coefficient was calculated as 0.901 for the test-retest correlation analysis after 3 weeks (P < .001). There was a positive correlation between Attitudes Toward Motherhood Scale and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. The results of this study revealed that the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Attitudes Toward Motherhood Scale were satisfactory.

EARLY TRAUMA INVENTORY-SELF REPORT SHORT FORM: TURKISH ADAPTATION AND PSYCHOMETRIC ANALYSIS FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

The aim of this study is to adapt the Early Trauma Inventory-Self Report Short Form to Turkish and test its validity and reliability for university students. The inventory was translated, and the Turkish form was finalised. The first study group, whose data were used to conduct the confirmatory factor analysis regarding the scale, consisted of 350 undergraduate, and graduate students from 14 different universities in the fall semester of the 2021-2022 academic year; 270 of whom were female and 80 of whom were male. In data analysis, descriptive statistics were calculated; confirmatory factor analysis and reliability analyses were performed. Since Early Trauma Inventory Short Form is an inventory consisting of sub-scales, a separate confirmatory factor analysis was performed for each sub-scale of Turkish version. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the model data fit of the general trauma subscale was “good,” and it was “perfect” for the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse subscales. Cronbach alpha internal consistency coefficients and test-re-test correlations were found to be satisfactory. Results show that the Early Trauma Inventory-Self Report Short Form is a valid and reliable tool to use in determining early childhood trauma.

Turkish Version of the Perceived Future Decent Work Securement Scale: Validity and Reliability for Nursing Students

BackgroundThe aim of the study was to test the validity and reliability of the Perceived Future Decent Work Securement Scale for Turkish nursing students. MethodsA cross-sectional, methodological study design was used. The study was carried out at three nursing undergraduate programs in Turkey during the academic year of 2020–2021 with 336 senior nursing students. Language validity and content validity analyses were performed for the scale adaptation, followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) for construct validity. The reliability of the scale was determined using the test-retest and Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficient. ResultsThe scale-content validity index score was 0.988. In CFA, all goodness-of-fit indices verified the acceptable fit of the model; its root mean square error of approximation was 0.076; the normed fit index was 0.909; the standardized mean square residual was 0.097; the relative fit index was 0.881; the goodness-of-fit index was 0.915; the adjusted goodness-of-fit index was 0.872 and χ2/df = 2.932. The overall reliability was α = 0.86. The item-total correlations of the scale were above the acceptable level, and the test-retest analysis had a high correlation. The access to healthcare (14.68, SD 3.53) obtained the highest average score, and the adequate compensation (8.52, SD 3.76) was the lowest rated by the senior nursing students. ConclusionThe Perceived Future Decent Work Securement Scale is a valid and reliable scale to assess nursing students' future decent work securement.

The Scale of Learning Strategies for Distance Education Students: The Study of Adaptation to Turkish

The aim of this study is to conduct a validity and reliability study for adaptation of the scale of learning strategies to Turkish, which was developed by Pintrich, Smith, Garcia and McKeachie (1991) and adapted by Meijs et al. (2019) for distance education students. The Scale of Learning Strategies for Distance Education Students is a scale consisting of 25 items and 5 factors (management of time and effort, complex cognitive strategies use, simple cognitive strategies use, communication with others, and academic thinking). After testing equivalance of Turkish form, the validity and reliability studies of the Scale of Learning Strategies for Distance Education Students were conducted with participation of 411 students studying in different departments of Kocaeli University in the fall semester of the 2021-2022 academic year. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) method was used for the adaptation of the scale, the significance of the differences between item average scores of the groups over and below 27% were examined with Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficients, corrected item-total correlations, and t-test in order to determine the relabilities. As a result of normality test and first CFA, the 2nd and 6th items in the time and effort management sub-dimension were excluded from the scale in accordance with expert opinions due to fact that their standardized regression coefficients were not significant. When the fit indices were examined as a result of the analysis, the findings were as follows χ2 /sd =2.594, RMSEA= 0.064, SRMR= 0.0616, GFI= 0.894, NFI= 0.879, TLI= 0.908, CFI= 0.921 and IFI=0,922. The corrected total correlations of the scale items ranged between 0.37 and 0.68. The results of t-test applied to the scores of the groups over and below 27% were found to be significant for all items. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the reliability of the overall scale was calculated as 0.915. A significant correlation was determined between the sub-dimensions of the scale and between the sub-dimensions and the total. According to these findings, adaption of the scale to Turkish is valid and reliable.

The validity and reliability study of the Turkish version of the Sexual Satisfaction Scale for Men (SSS-M)

Objective: This study was carried out to determine whether the Turkish version of the Sexual Satisfaction Scale for Men (SSS-M), a modified version of the Women Sexual Satisfaction Scale (SSS-W) developed by Meston and his friends is a valid and reliable tool or not. Material and Methods: This is a methodological study and was conducted between March and July 2021. After the language translation and content validity studies of the 30-item of which Likert-type scale and five sub-dimensions a preliminary application was carried out on a group of 30 people. Data were obtained from 193 male individuals on an online platform after ethical approval. Whereas for the scope\content validity of the scale Content Validity was used, to test for validity Confirmatory Factor Analysis was performed. To verify its dependableness, the Cronbach Alpha score and item-total correlation score were tested. The time invariance of the scale was evaluated with a test-retest. Results: The scale and content validity was reviewed by eight experts. The construct validity of the scale was performed by using confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses. Confirmatory factor loads were determined between .55 and .87, and exploratory factor loads were determined between 0.34 and .83. The correlation coefficient between the score of each item and the scale score was determined as r=.35-.80 (p&lt;.001). The Cronbach Alpha internal consistency and reliability coefficients were found as .95 in the total of the scale and were found as.82-.95 in its sub-dimensions. No significant difference was found in the test-retest reliability analysis (p&gt;.05). Conclusion: As a result of this study, it was determined that the Turkish version of the five-dimension "Sexual Satisfaction Scale for Men (SSS-M)" is a valid and reliable four-dimensional instrument and can be used in research and clinic. Keywords: sexual satisfaction, men, reability, validity

Development of toileting behaviour evaluation for Japanese older patients using wheelchairs in a hospital setting: a validation study

BackgroundAgeing limits the activities of daily living (ADLs). Among ADLs, a lack of toileting independence causes a decline in the quality of life, mental health, and social participation. Therefore, occupational therapists spend considerable time assessing toileting disability based on various assessment methods for toileting behaviour. However, these assessment methods have issues with the grading levels, number of items, and diseases covered, and they fail to evaluate toileting behaviour accurately and sensitively. Hence, this study developed a Toileting Behaviour Evaluation (TBE) on a 6-point ordinal scale for patients using wheelchairs, with 22 activity components for various diseases.MethodsThis study examined the reliability and validity of the TBE in acute and subacute hospitals in Japan. To this end, two occupational therapists assessed 50 patients for inter-rater reliability at different times and one assessed them twice within 7–10 days for intra-rater reliability using the TBE. Furthermore, occupational therapists assessed 100 patients for internal consistency using the TBE and for concurrent validity using the TBE and Functional Independence Measure (FIM). The patients had been diagnosed with various diseases. This study used the weighted kappa coefficient for statistical analysis of the inter-rater and intra-rater reliability, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for internal consistency, and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient for concurrent validity. We performed all statistical analyses using the IBM SPSS Statistics ver. 25 for Windows. All P-values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant.ResultsThe minimum weighted kappa coefficients for the inter-rater and intra-rater reliability for each item were 0.67 and 0.79, respectively. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.98 for the 22 items. The Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient between the mean scores on the TBE and FIM for toilet-related items was 0.74 (P < .01).ConclusionsThe TBE demonstrated good reliability and validity. This means that therapists can use it to identify impaired toileting behaviour. However, the relationship between impairments and each item of toileting behaviour should be explored in future studies. Additionally, studies should examine the creation of a specific index of functions of independence in each toileting behaviour.

Psychometric properties of the Turkish version of BUMPs and its relationship with prenatal attachment

ABSTRACT Objective The present research aims to adapt the Body Understanding Measure for Pregnancy Scale (BUMPs) to Turkish, determine its psychometric properties, and examine the correlation between prenatal attachment and body image perception of pregnant women. Methods Three hundred seventy-one pregnant women were enrolled in the research. The original English version of the BUMPs was translated into Turkish using forward-backward translation logic. The scale’s reliability was evaluated with item analysis, internal consistency analysis, and test-retest reliability. Turkish version of the BUMPs and Prenatal Attachment Inventory (PAI) were filled out by pregnant women. The relationship between them was evaluated by correlation analysis. Results The mean week of gestation was 25.25 ± 8.26 (min: 12, max: 41). The Turkish version of the BUMPs exhibited satisfactory psychometric properties. The t-values, factor loadings, and fit indices of the scale items of the Turkish version were at an acceptable and excellent level. As a result of confirmatory factor analysis, the 18-item, three-factor construct was confirmed for the Turkish version of the scale. In the Turkish version of the scale, there are three subscales, including satisfaction with appearing pregnant, weight gain concerns, and physical burdens of pregnancy. Cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficient of the overall scale was 0.84. A significant correlation was determined between the scores of the Turkish version of the BUMPs and the PAI (r = −0.263; p < 0.001). Conclusion The Turkish version of the BUMPs is a valid and reliable measurement tool for determining pregnant women’s body image perception. Prenatal attachment increases with the increasing body image perception of pregnant women.

A Scale Development Study: Brain Fog Scale.

This research was conducted to objectively evaluate the level of brain fog that may develop due to many reasons. This was a methodological study. This study was conducted in Turkey. Content validity ratio, EFA, CFA, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin analysis and Bartlett's test of sphericity, Item analysis, Cronbach's alpha coefficient, Spearman-Brown, Guttman Analysis and test-retest correlations validity-reliability analysis were performed. The statistical meaningfulness level in all tests was determined as p<0.05. As a result of context validity, factor analysis and item analysis, a 30 item scale with 3 subscale was obtained. The variance amount explained by the 3 subscale was on a very good level (77.43%). The fact that all of the Cronbach alpha, Spearman-Brown and Guttman internal consistency coefficients of the scale and all of its subscale are above 0.70. When the test retest reliability coefficients of the scale was examined, the scale was found to present consistent results in different applications and the scale was found to be reliable with regard to the constancy coefficient. The Brain Fog Scale consists of 30 items and 3 subscales. It is a valid and reliable instrument.

Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Psychological Health of Patients Who Underwent Liver Transplantation Due to Hepatocellular Carcinoma

The primary aim of this study was to compare liver transplant (LT) recipients with and without hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in terms of COVID-19-related depression, anxiety, and stress. A total of 504 LT recipients with (HCC group; n = 252) and without HCC (non-HCC group; n = 252) were included in the present case-control study. Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) and Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) were used to evaluate the depression, stress, and anxiety levels of LT patients. DASS-21 total and CAS-SF scores were determined as the primary outcomes of the study. Poisson regression and negative binomial regression models were used to predict the DASS and CAS scores. The incidence rate ratio (IRR) was used as a coefficient. Both groups were also compared in terms of awareness of the COVID-19 vaccine. Poisson regression and negative binomial regression analyses for DASS-21 total and CAS-SF scales showed that the negative binomial regression method was the appropriate model for both scales. According to this model, it was determined that the following independent variables increased the DASS-21 total score: non-HCC (IRR: 1.26; p = 0.031), female gender (IRR: 1.29; p = 0.036), presence of chronic disease (IRR: 1.65; p < 0.001), exposure to COVID-19 (IRR: 1.63; p < 0.001), and nonvaccination (IRR: 1.50; p = 0.002). On the other hand, it was determined that the following independent variables increased the CAS score: female gender (IRR:1.75; p = 0.014) and exposure to COVID-19 (IRR: 1.51; p = 0.048). Significant differences were found between the HCC and non-HCC groups in terms of median DASS-21 total (p < 0.001) and CAS-SF (p = 0.002) scores. Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficients of DASS-21 total and CAS-SF scales were calculated to be 0.823 and 0.783, respectively. This study showed that the variables including patients without HCC, female gender, having a chronic disease, being exposed to COVID-19, and not being vaccinated against COVID-19 increased anxiety, depression, and stress. High internal consistency coefficients obtained from both scales indicate that these results are reliable.

Developing a technological value-orientation perception scale for teacher candidates

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to develop a valid and reliable measurement tool to measure teacher candidates’ perception of technological value orientations. Design/Methodology/ It was conducted based on data from 400 teacher candidates for explanatory factor analysis (EFA) and 680 teacher candidates for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the 2018–2019 academic year. Expert opinions were sought for the content validity and face validity of the scale as well as the EFA and CFA were conducted for construct validity. EFA yielded a three-factor solution consisting of 12 items that accounted for 53.17% of total variance. These factors were labeled as “Negative Impact on Friendship, Honesty, and Responsibility”, “Negative Impact on Overall Values”, and “Positive Impact on Access to Information and Benevolence“. Cronbach’s Alpha internal consistency coefficient of the scale was found to be 0.75. Besides, findings from the CFA indicated that Technological Value Orientation Perception Scale of Teacher Candidates is of adequate fit with 12 items under a three-factor construct. In addition, the convergent and discriminant validity results also supported the three-factor structure. This scale could of help researchers to measure the perception of prospective teachers about the impact of technology on value-orientations and to plan desired studies accordingly.

The Effect of Personality Traits, Class Level, and Gender on EFL Learners' Online Learning Acceptance among Tunisian University Students

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the transition from in-person instruction to online education. Most students in Tunisia repudiated such sudden transfer. This study, then, probes into factors that impact the online learning experience during the pandemic. Hence, it investigates the effect of affective variables, namely personality traits, on learners' acceptance of online learning in the Tunisian EFL formal university context. Additionally, it scrutinizes the relationship between remote learning on the one hand and class level and gender on the other hand. The considered variables are gauged using a Likert-scale response format questionnaire. The subjects are 150 Tunisian EFL university students at the Higher Institute of Applied Studies in Humanities of Gafsa. The data analysis procedures used are the alpha internal consistency coefficient informing about the instrument's reliability and the Spearman Rho correlation, giving insight into the correlations among the study variables. The study found that personality represents a good predictor of learners' acceptance of distance learning. Regarding the class level, no significant correlation was found between this variable and acceptance of online learning. The same insignificant correlation was detected between gender and Internet-based learning. Hence, the study concludes that considering learners' differences is primordial in accounting for the success of EFL online courses.

Validity and Reliability of the Work-Family Balance Scale among Turkish Academicians

Aim: The aim of this study is to adapt the Work-Family Balance Scale to Turkish and test its validity and reliability. Material and Methods: This methodological study was conducted with 134 academicians. The data were collected through an online survey using the Academician Information Form and the Work-Family Balance Scale. The scale was finalized and back-translated following expert opinions. Confirmatory factor analysis was carried out for the construct validity, and content validity was performed. Test-retest and Cronbach alpha internal consistency coefficient was used for the reliability. Results: The Cronbach's α coefficient of the scale was found as 0.89. The test-retest analysis of the study was conducted with 42 participants, and no significant difference was found between the test-retest reliability (t= 1.126, p=0.197). Pearson's correlation coefficient was also found (r=0.83, p&amp;lt;0.001). The content validity index was 0.94. According to factor analysis, the factor loads ranged from 0.64 to 0.87. The explained variance was found to be 68.70%, and the structure of the scale was one-dimensional and consistent with the original version. The model’s comparative fit indexes, χ2/SD (2.29) (&amp;lt;2), and GFI (0.95) (&amp;gt;0.90) were found between acceptable. Conclusion: The scale was valid and reliable for Turkish academicians, and the results should be confirmed in different employee groups.

Validity and Reliability Study of Listening Attitude Scale for Prospective Teachers

The aim of this study is to develop a measurement tool to measure the listening/watching attitudes of pre-service teachers. 387 pre-service teachers were administered the scale, and its validity and reliability studies were conducted by exploratory factor analysis, internal consistency measurement, and confirmatory factor analysis. EFA revealed that the scale has four dimensions. To determine the reliability of the scale, the Cronbach Alpha internal consistency coefficient was calculated at 0.928. In the principal component analysis, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) coefficient was found to be 0.937. In addition, the Barlett Sphericity test was significant (χ2 = 4607.552; p&lt;0.05). Varimax rotation resulted in factor loadings ranging between 0.37 and 0.91. In CFA, the standardized regression coefficients averaged around 0.700 and the items in each dimension had a significant predictive power. As a result of the analysis, a valid and reliable scale was obtained.&#x0D;

Spor Turizminin Toplum Üzerindeki Etkisine İlişkin Bölge Sakinlerinin Algısı ve Desteği Ölçeğinin Türkçe Geçerlik ve Güvenirlik Çalışması

In this research, it is aimed to adapt the “Regional Perception and Support Scale for the Impact of Sports Tourism on Society” to the Turkish language and culture. The measurement tool provides the opportunity to segment the “Sports Tourism” for those who provide services in the sports and tourism industry, the audience or the individuals who participate in a sports organization as a participant, what kind of effects the organization has on the destination and how much the people of the region support sports tourism. The research universe is Ankara. It consists of a total of 341 people selected by convenience sampling method in the provinces of Eskişehir and İzmir. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to test the structure of the scale. As a result of the analysis, it was revealed that the values of the scale were above the values given for compliance in the literature and were in a positive harmony. At the same time, the construct validity of the scale was tested. The Cronbach Alpha (0.874) internal consistency coefficient for the reliability of the scale, which consists of 6 dimensions and 22 questions, is above the values specified in the literature. According to the findings, it has been determined that the “Regional Perception and Support Scale for the Impact of Sports Tourism on the Society” is a valid and reliable measurement tool.

A Developmental Study of the Attitude Scale towards Teaching Arabic Language (ASTTAL): Reliability and Validity Analysis

This study aims to develop a valid and reliable measurement tool to determine the attitudes of Arabic teachers toward Arabic language teaching. The population of this study consists of 171 teachers and teacher candidates for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and 202 teachers for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), who teach Arabic in Turkey. The study population was reached through Google Forms in January and June 2022. Due to the difficulty and limitation of reaching Arabic language teachers, convenient sampling and snowball sampling methods were used in the selection of the study sample. The draft scale items created as a result of the literature review were evaluated by field experts for face and content validity, and the scale was finalized. EFA was used to test construct validity. The results of the analysis showed that the scale consisted of 23 items with two sub-dimensions. Sub-dimensions explain 56.95% of the variance. DFA was performed to validate the obtained results. The fitness values reached by DFA included CMIN/df=2.028, RMSEA=.072, CFI=.920, IFI=.921, and SRMR=.074. In general, it was determined that the CMIN/df fitness values, perfect fitness values, and other fitness coefficients were at an acceptable fitness level. The item discrimination level of the scale was found to be significant in favor of the upper group. The Cronbach Alpha internal consistency coefficients were examined to determine the reliability of the scale. The Cronbach Alpha internal consistency coefficients were 0.944 for the first sub-factor, 0.855 for the second sub-factor, and 0.944 for the whole scale. As a result of the analyses made, it was concluded that the two-factor scale consisting of 23 items was valid and reliable. All these findings revealed that the measurement tool has a structure that can measure the attitude of Arabic language teachers towards teaching Arabic.

Psychometrics of Job Stress-Related Presenteeism Scale among Turkish Nurses.

Presenteeism occurs when workers are present at work but with diminished work capacity due to illness, stress, or other causes. Recent studies report that nursing is one of the leading professional groups experiencing presenteeism. Although studies of illness-related presenteeism predominate, fewer studies have investigated stress-related presenteeism. Nurses in Turkey are particularly vulnerable to stress-related presenteeism because of the country's low nurse-to-patient ratio. A scale for measuring presenteeism from job stress - the Job-Stress-Related-Presenteeism Scale-has been developed but not validated. This study had two objectives: to adapt the Job-Stress-Related-Presenteeism Scale to Turkish to use in measuring of presenteeism from job stress among nurses; and to assess the scale's validity. We conducted a cross-sectional study to test the content validity, construct validity, reliability, and stability of a Turkish version of the Job-Stress-Related Presenteeism Scale on a sample of 261 nurses. The content validity index of the Job-Stress-Related Presenteeism Scale was .65. Item-total score correlation values varied between .44 and .77. The confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the six-item, one-factor construct. The Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficient was .86. Results indicated that our adapted version of the Job-Stress-Related Presenteeism Scale is valid and suitable for use in Turkey.

Turkish validity and reliability study for the perceived control of asthma questionnaire

Rationale The prevalence of asthma is high in Turkish people. however, there is no measurement tool that evaluates the patient’s perception that affects asthma management. Aim In this study, the aim was to test the validity and reliability of the Perceived Control of Asthma Questionnaire (PCAQ) among adults with asthma and to investigate the psychometric features. Method A total of 152 people aged 18 and over, who were diagnosed with asthma at least 1 year ago by a pulmonologist and volunteered to participate in the study were included in the study. The validity of the scale was investigated with exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and criterion validity, while the reliability of the scale was investigated with the Cronbach alpha coefficient and test-repeat test method. Item analysis, corrected item-total point correlations and mean item points for lower-upper 27% groups were investigated. Results According to exploratory factor analysis results, the Turkish form of the PCAQ appeared to explain 53.093% of total variance related to the feature measured. The results of confirmatory factor analysis calculated the goodness-of-fit values for the scale as χ2/sd = 1.507, RMSEA = 0.058, GFI = 0.928, IFI = 0.958, and NFI = 0.886. Additionally, factor loads were ranked from 0.46 to 0.79. The Cronbach alpha internal consistency coefficient was 0.85. The corrected item-total coefficient correlations varied from 0.48 to 0.69. Conclusion All these results show the Perceived Control of Asthma Questionnaire (PCAQ) is a valid and reliable scale tool that can be used for Turkish adults with asthma.

Educational Technology Research Trends: A 10-Year Content Analysis of PhD Dissertations

This study investigates the trends of doctoral dissertations produced in Türkiye in the field of Educational Technologies. 292 doctoral dissertations were included in this study which was conducted in the design of document analysis in the period between 2011 and 2020. The dissertations were put to content analysis by using the Dissertation Analysis Form developed within the scope of this study. The results demonstrated that the approach of the mixed method research was more commonly used in the dissertations. As a research model, it has been determined that case study from qualitative approaches and quasi-experimental model from quantitative approaches are mostly preferred. It is seen that the students of the faculty of education are greatly used as the sample. It is concluded that descriptive statistical methods are mostly used during the data analysis phase and the SPSS program is the most frequently preferred data analysis program. It has been determined that simple level statistical analysis techniques are used in theses. It is clear that although effect size calculations were made, there were also studies in which the type was not specified. Of the statistical techniques used for validity and reliability, Cronbach’s Alpha internal consistency coefficient was found to be frequently used. 1376 keywords emerged in the analysed theses. These keywords were presented visually using a force-directed algorithm. Stating sampling methods clearly in studies will guide the studies to be conducted in the future. The sampling of different types of students is important in that it enriches the potential areas of study paving the way for the emergence of different perspectives.

A study on the standard setting, validity, and reliability of a standardized patient performance rating scale – student version

Introduction The quality of the performances of standardized patients plays a significant role in the effectiveness of clinical skills education. Therefore, providing standardized patients with constant feedback is essential. It is especially important to get students’ perspectives immediately following their encounters with standardized patients. In the literature, there is no scale for use by students to evaluate the performance of standardized patients. Thus, the three main goals of this study were to: (1) develop a scale for use by students to evaluate the performance of standardized patients, (2) examine the psychometric properties of the scale, and (3) determine a cut-off score for the scale in a standard-setting Materials and methods Seven hundred and two medical students participated in the scale- development process, the pilot test, and the validation process, and seven educators took part in the standard-setting process. After the evaluation of content validity, construct validity was assessed via exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. For the standard-setting study, the extended Angoff method was used. Results The exploratory factor analysis revealed that the scale had a single-factor structure, which was confirmed by confirmatory factor analysis. The Cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficient was 0.91. The scale consists of nine items. The cut-off score was determined to be 24.11/45, which represents the minimum acceptable standard for standardized patient performance. Conclusions Our study outlined the critical steps in developing a measurement tool and produced a valid and reliable scale that allows medical students to assess the performance of standardized patients immediately following their interaction with the standardized patient. This scale constitutes an important contribution to the literature as it provides a tool for standardized patient trainers to assess standardized patients’ weaknesses and help them improve their performance. KEY MESSAGES Evaluation of SP performance is essential to ensure the educational quality of clinical skills training programs. Students are the most relevant stakeholders to give feedback about SP performance immediately after encounters. The ‘Standardized Patient Performance Rating Scale – Student Version’ is a valid, reliable scale that can be used by students for the evaluation of standardized patients’ strengths and weaknesses at individual-performance levels quickly.

Mask Use Scale: A Scale Development Study

Background: The correct use of face masks is one of the most effective ways to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections. Objectives: The present study aimed to develop a valid and reliable measure to assess attitudes and behaviors related to face mask use in social settings. Methods: This methodological study was conducted online between July 23, 2021, and September 24, 2021. The inclusion criteria entailed an age range of ≥18 years, literacy in Turkish, use of face masks, and willingness to participate in the study. The participants of the study included 489 cases who met the inclusion criteria. Data were collected using a sociodemographic information form and the Mask Use Scale. The data were evaluated using descriptive statistics, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, dependent-samples t-test, Pearson correlation analysis, and Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficients. Results: Based on the results, 36 items of the Mask Use Scale had positive and significant item-total correlation coefficients (P&lt;0.001). Mean scores in the test and retest demonstrated no significant difference (P&gt;0.05). Cronbach's alpha coefficients were .76 for the mask use subscale, .77 for the hygiene subscale, .78 for the cloth mask subscale, .77 for the requirement subscale, .80 for the mask selection subscale, and .93 for the entire scale. Conclusion: As evidenced by the obtained results, the Mask Use Scale is a valid and reliable tool and can be used to determine adults' attitudes and behavior related to the use of face masks in social settings.