Reliable Measurement Tool Research Articles

60-72 AYLIK ÇOCUKLAR İÇİN DUYGULARI ANLAMA TESTİ’NİN TÜRKİYE UYARLAMASI: GEÇERLİ

The ability to understand emotions, which has been gained since early childhood, is of great importance at the point of gaining emotional competence. We can consolidate emotional competence of children by defining their emotional competence and making regulations in need from early times. In this direction, a valid and reliable measurement tool is needed to measure the ability in understanding emotions of preschool children including Syrian refugee children. The aim of this study is to conduct the validity and reliability study of the Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC), developed by Pons and Harris (2000), in Turkey. The sample of the study consist of 388 children 263 of whom are Turkish and 125 are Syrian refuge children who are selected from 60-72 months old children studying in kindergartens affiliated to the ministry of national education in Mersin province Akdeniz,Toros,Mezitli and Yenişehir central districts. First, the scale was translated from English to Turkish by three different linguists. Then, it was translated back into English by three other language experts and the consistency between the texts was checked. In addition, the comprehensibility of the items was tested by making a pilot application. The tasks expected from children in the scale were evaluated by pre-school education and measurement field experts. In order to determine the construct validity within the scope of the research, Confirmatory Factor Analysis was performed. As a result of the analyzes, it was determined that the scale exhibited a two-dimensional structure consisting of seven components with 23 items, and it was seen that acceptable fit indices were obtained (χ2/sd=1.84; RMSEA=0.046; CFI= 0.94; TLI=0.90; SRMR=0,10). When factor loading values are examined, ıt was seen that the values for the external dimension are between 0.49 and 0.95; For the Mental and Reflective dimensions, it was found to be between 0.21 and 0.82. In order to obtain information about the reliability of the test, the Mcdonald omega coefficient was examined, 0.81 for the first sub-dimension; 0.56 for the second sub-dimension and 0.81 for the whole scale. These results show that the Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC) is a valid and reliable tool for assessing children’s ability to understand emotions in Turkey.

The validity and reliability study of the Turkish version of engagement in healthy ageing.

A long life to be spent in a healthy, independent and vigorous way is one of humanity's biggest dreams. This is the engagement of individuals in healthy ageing processes. This study was carried out to conduct the Turkish validity and reliability study of the "Engagement in Healthy Ageing Scale" developed by Menichetti, Bonanomi, and Graffigna [3] to determine the engagement of individuals in healthy ageing and their experiences with healthy ageing. The quantitative research design was used in the study and descriptive findings were presented. Personal information form and the "Engagement in Healthy Ageing Scale" were used in the study's data collection. In addition, the "Health Seeking Behaviour Scale", and the "Self-Efficacy Scale" were used to conduct context validity. The data of the study were analysed with the help of SPSS and the LISREL package program. It was determined that the goodness of fit index values of the Engagement in Healthy Ageing Scale, which was adapted into Turkish, showed good fit and acceptable fit. To test the context validity, the correlational relationship of the Engagement in Healthy Ageing Promotion Scale with the Health Seeking Behaviour and Self-Efficacy scales were examined. As a result of the correlation analysis, it was determined that there is a positive relationship between engagement in healthy ageing and health-seeking behaviour and self-efficacy. As a result of the research, it was determined that the Engagement in Healthy Aging Scale is a valid and reliable measurement tool in Turkish culture (Appendix).

Linguistic Equivalence, Validity and Reliability Study of the Mind Excessively Wandering Scale.

The main objective was to study the linguistic equivalence, validity and reliability of the transliterated Turkish version of Mind Excessively Wandering Scale (MEWS) developed by Prof. Philip Asherson in England (2016). Mind excessively wandering defines uncontrolled mental phenomena, which is proposed as the psychological counterpart of Default Mode Network in literature. Mind Excessively Wandering Scale, Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Self-Report Scale, Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale have been used. The sample group consists of 64 patients previously diagnosed as adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder for validity, 60 students for transliteral equivalence, and 80 healthy controls for test re-test reliability. Transliteral equivalence study demonstrates that Turkish version of MEWS is highly correlated with the English version and is statistically significant. The sixth item in the scale was removed in order to ensure the consistency model established by LISREL in the validity study according to the confirmatory factor analysis. When the sixth item was excluded, it was concluded that the structure of the scale was compatible. In the reliability study of the MEWS, the Cronbach's alpha value (α) of the scale was found to be 0.826. It is seen that the item with the highest distinctiveness feature is Item-10 (0.618) and the item with the lowest distinctiveness feature is Item-5 (0.318). In the linguistic equivalence study, no statistical difference was found between the English form and the Turkish versions of the scale. As a result of the practical and statistical evaluations, our study demonstrated that the Turkish version of the MEWS is a valid and reliable measurement tool.

Investigation of the validity and reliability of the Turkish Form of the Adult Executive Functions Inventory (ADEXI)

This study aims to examine the psychometric properties of the Turkish Version of the Adult Executive Functions Inventory (ADEXI), which was developed to evaluate the executive functions of adults. The study sample consisted of 330 university students aged between 18 and 30 (M = 20.59, SD =1.84). The participants filled out the Demographics Form, Cognitive Flexibility Inventory, Barrat Impulsivity Scale, Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Self-Report Scale, and the Turkish version of ADEXI. The two-factor structure (working memory and inhibition) in the original version of the scale was confirmed by second-level confirmatory factor analysis. ADEXI's association with other measurement tools were also observed. Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficients for the total score of the scale and for the working memory and inhibition dimensions were calculated as .80, .83, and 73, respectively. Moreover, Gutman's two-half reliability coefficients for the total score of the scale and working memory and inhibition dimensions were calculated as .75, .81, and .69, respectively. Our results showed that the Turkish version of ADEXI is a valid and reliable measurement tool that can be used to evaluate two dimensions of executive functions, working memory and inhibition.

Turkish Validity and Reliability Study of the ECT Perception and Knowledge Scale.

Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) is an effective and safe treatment method used in the treatment of various psychiatric diseases. However, negative attitudes associated with ECT are common. This causes many negative consequences, from the treatment preference to treatment response and stigma. In this study, we aimed to carry out a validity-reliability analysis of the ECT Perception and Knowledge Scale (ECT-PK), which was developed to determine the perception and knowledge levels related to ECT, and adapt it to Turkish. The Turkish adaptation of the ECT-PK was made using the translation-retranslation method. Our study included 50 patients with schizophrenia, 50 patients with bipolar disorder, 50 patients with major depression who met the remission criteria determined separately for each disorder, and 150 healthy controls.. To measure test-retest reliability, the scale was re-applied to 30 patients randomly selected from the patient group 14-21 days after the first application of the scale. In our study, a significant difference was found in both the patient and control groups in terms of the history of ECT application in the past and the status of accepting ECT application when recommended, and the perception and knowledge subscales of the ECT-PK. These results support the construct and criterion validity of the ECT-PK. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was found to be 0.85 for the perception subscale and 0.78 for the knowledge subscale. The intra-class correlation coefficient used to evaluate the test-retest reliability was 0.86 for the perception scale and 0.83 for the knowledge subscale. It has been shown that the ECT-PK is a valid and reliable measurement tool that can be used to measure the perception and knowledge levels related to ECT in both clinical and non-clinical groups.

Fertility awareness scale development study in Turkish women

There is a lack of information about fertility in the world, so in order to increase fertility awareness, it is necessary to provide effective counseling services. Therefore, there is a need for reliable measurement tools to be used to determine fertility awareness levels in women. This study of 500 women between the ages of 18 and 49 focussed on developing a valid fertility awareness instrument. Scale development was carried out in 4 stages; creating an item pool, expert opinion, pilot testing, and validity-reliability analysis. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Test, Explanatory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were carried out to ensure construct validity, and the Cronbach's α internal consistency coefficient. Item total correlation and test-retest analysis were used to test the scale's reliability. As a result of the explanatory factor analysis (EFA) conducted for the validity of the 39-item scale used in the study, 20 items with a factor load below 0.30 were removed from the scale, and a scale consisting of 19 items and two dimensions was obtained. The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) that was carried out supported the 2-factor construct (bodily awareness and cognitive awareness) of the Fertility Awareness Scale, and the fit indices of the scale were determined to be sufficient. The Cronbach's alpha internal consistency coefficient was found to be 0.887, 0.623 and 0.659 in the overall FAS and its dimensions. Furthermore, the item-total correlation analysis and test-retest analysis of the scale revealed high correlations. Consequently, a valid and reliable measurement tool that can measure the fertility awareness levels of women was obtained.

Development and reliability testing of a tool to assess knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding physical restrain

Objective: To develop a reliable and accurate measurement tool for assessing critical care nurses' knowledge, attitude, and practice in the area of physical restraint and create an instructional module on physical restraint for critical care nurses. Methodology: The technique for creating and validating the tools involved several steps: (a) creating a theoretical framework and conducting a literature review; (b) developing the instructional module and tool items; (c) determining validity, and (d) pilot testing. A knowledge questionnaire, an attitude scale, a self-reporting practice checklist, and an instructional module were among the tools we produced. We examined the tools through face validity and content validity. We pilot tested the tool on a total of 20 critical care nurses, dividing them into 10 subjects each: experimental and control. Results: The items were assessed on their clarity, easy comprehension, and whether they effectively captured the subject being assessed, and they incorporated the expert’s suggestions into the tool development. In the questionnaire, the content validity ratio (CVR) of the item must be greater than or equal to 0.99 to be considered. Cronbach’s alpha done for the knowledge (0769 vs 0.764), attitude (0.694 vs 0.828) and practice (0.766 vs 0.624) domains show that the items have an acceptable level of internal consistency in both study groups. Conclusions: The assessment tool developed was validated by experts in the field and tested for reliability. With a good reliability score, it may be used as a tool in the field of physical restraint.

Quantitative measures used in empirical evaluations of mental health policy implementation: A systematic review.

Mental health is a critical component of wellness. Public policies present an opportunity for large-scale mental health impact, but policy implementation is complex and can vary significantly across contexts, making it crucial to evaluate implementation. The objective of this study was to (1) identify quantitative measurement tools used to evaluate the implementation of public mental health policies; (2) describe implementation determinants and outcomes assessed in the measures; and (3) assess the pragmatic and psychometric quality of identified measures. Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, Policy Implementation Determinants Framework, and Implementation Outcomes Framework, we conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed journal articles published in 1995-2020. Data extracted included study characteristics, measure development and testing, implementation determinants and outcomes, and measure quality using the Psychometric and Pragmatic Evidence Rating Scale. We identified 34 tools from 25 articles, which were designed for mental health policies or used to evaluate constructs that impact implementation. Many measures lacked information regarding measurement development and testing. The most assessed implementation determinants were readiness for implementation, which encompassed training (n = 20, 57%) and other resources (n = 12, 34%), actor relationships/networks (n = 15, 43%), and organizational culture and climate (n = 11, 31%). Fidelity was the most prevalent implementation outcome (n = 9, 26%), followed by penetration (n = 8, 23%) and acceptability (n = 7, 20%). Apart from internal consistency and sample norms, psychometric properties were frequently unreported. Most measures were accessible and brief, though minimal information was provided regarding interpreting scores, handling missing data, or training needed to administer tools. This work contributes to the nascent field of policy-focused implementation science by providing an overview of existing measurement tools used to evaluate mental health policy implementation and recommendations for measure development and refinement. To advance this field, more valid, reliable, and pragmatic measures are needed to evaluate policy implementation and close the policy-to-practice gap. Mental health is a critical component of wellness, and public policies present an opportunity to improve mental health on a large scale. Policy implementation is complex because it involves action by multiple entities at several levels of society. Policy implementation is also challenging because it can be impacted by many factors, such as political will, stakeholder relationships, and resources available for implementation. Because of these factors, implementation can vary between locations, such as states or countries. It is crucial to evaluate policy implementation, thus we conducted a systematic review to identify and evaluate the quality of measurement tools used in mental health policy implementation studies. Our search and screening procedures resulted in 34 measurement tools. We rated their quality to determine if these tools were practical to use and would yield consistent (i.e., reliable) and accurate (i.e., valid) data. These tools most frequently assessed whether implementing organizations complied with policy mandates and whether organizations had the training and other resources required to implement a policy. Though many were relatively brief and available at little-to-no cost, these findings highlight that more reliable, valid, and practical measurement tools are needed to assess and inform mental health policy implementation. Findings from this review can guide future efforts to select or develop policy implementation measures.

Адаптация опросника измерения отчуждения от работы для русскоязычной выборки

The relevance of the work is due to the lack of a Russian-language tool that would be designed to measure work alienation and adequate for research in the field of labor psychology. Purpose. The purpose of the work is to adapt and test the Work Alienation Assessment Questionnaire in the context of Russian-language culture. Method. The adaptation sample consisted of 230 employees of socionomic professions at the age of 20 to 27 years. As part of the adaptation of the Work Alienation Assessment Questionnaire (Fragebogen zur arbeitsbezogenen Entfremdung und Aneignung, FAEA) (Aigner etal., 2015), an asymmetric translation was made from German into Russian. As additional methods tocheck the validity of the questionnaire scales, we used the subscale “work” of the subjective alienation questionnaire, the scale of satisfaction of basic needs at work, the work engagement scale. Findings. The questionnaire scales show high reliability and consistency, as well as high retest reliability with a measurement interval of one month. The factor structure is fully consistent with the author’s model. A one-factor structure was obtained for the scale “Alienation and appropriation of work: work in general” and the scale “Alienation and appropriation of work: concrete job”. For the scale “Alienation and assignment of work — satisfaction of needs”, a three-factor structure was confirmed separately for thespheres of work, organization, and relations. Value of results. Checking the competitive, constructive, and criterial validity of the questionnaire scales is confirmed and consistent with the author’s version. The customized questionnaire is a reliable and valid measurement tool for assessing work alienation.

“A PROSPECTIVE COMPARATIVE STUDY OF LOCAL STEROID INJECTION VS DRY NEEDLING FOR PLANTAR FASCIITIS”

BACKGROUND: Plantar fasciitis is one of the most common conditions of heel pain among adults. Most common affected age group being 40-60 years and it is a leading cause of occupational impairment. Non-invasive and invasive modalities are the two basic types of treatment. Invasive treatment modalilities like local injections, surgical treatment are advised for patients non-responding to non-invasive conservative treatment modalities. Local Steroid Injection (LSI) is the most common invasive treatment used whereas Dry Needling (DN) is proposed as a new modality of treatment recently. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of Dry Needling versus Local Steroid Injection for Plantar Fasciitis using short form of Foot Function Index Revised (FFI-R). METHODS:This is prospective randomized, single blind, controlled study. Fifty patients who were clinically and radiologically (USG) conrmed to have idiopathic plantar fasciitis were enrolled in the study after informed consent. Patients were randomized and assigned into 2 groups of 25 patients each. Group I was managed by Local Steroid Injection (LSI) and Group II was managed by Dry Needling (DN). Patients were followed every 4 weeks up to 12 weeks. They were assessed clinically and functionally based on short form of FFI-R CONCLUSION: Short form of Foot Function Index Revised (FFI-R) is a quick, reliable and patient friendly outcome measurement tool for plantar fasciitis. Both Local Corticosteroid Injection and Dry Needling are effective treatment in refractory cases of Plantar Fasciitis in adjunct to non-invasive conservative treatment modalities. Dry Needling is a safe and reliable procedure for treating refractory cases of Plantar Fasciitis. Even though corticosteroid injection is the most effective treatment for short term symptomatic relief (at 4 weeks), it is found that outcomes of Dry Needling are comparable with the efcacy of corticosteroid injection in the medium term follow-up (12 weeks). Dry Needling has greater physiological compatibility than corticosteroid injection in terms of ability to induce possible healing process in plantar fasciitis and devoid of any long term complication associated with corticosteroid injection.

Hospital's preparedness in road traffic injuries with mass casualties: Exploring a valid and reliable checklist

Background:The most important functional factor of hospitals is having a preparedness plan for dealing with disasters and emergencies such as road traffic injuries. There is a gap in the design and the development of a valid and reliable tool to evaluate the levels of hospital preparedness during road traffic injuries with mass casualty.Objectives:The aim of this study was to explore a valid and reliable tool for measurement of hospital preparedness in road traffic injuries with mass casualties.Methods:This study was conducted in two phases, each comprising different steps: tool design and judgmental evidence. In the first step, the determination of the content domain, sampling from content (item generation), and the formation of the tool and in the second stage, validity and reliability of the tool were performed.Results:From the 139 items that were finally set, nine dimensions including command and control, infrastructure and medical equipment, information and communication systems, surge capacity, triage and medical services, safety and security, human resources management, coordination and cooperation, and training and exercise were identified. Content validity index and content validity ratio of the tool were 0.97 and 0.98, respectively. The reliability of the tool was 0.89 with the kappa coefficient, respectively.Conclusion:The tool has sufficient reliability and validity for measuring hospital preparedness in road traffic injuries with mass casualties. Thus, this tool can be used for assessing the preparedness of hospitals for better planning, preparedness, and response to road traffic injuries with mass casualties.

Опросник благополучия PERMA-Profiler: апробация русскоязычной версии

Objective. Study aims to translate into Russian, to adapt and to validate a Russian version of PERMA-Profiler (Butler, Kern, 2016).Background. The topic of wellbeing and happiness gains attention in both academic publications and the business community. One of the key components for promoting wellbeing is providing a reliable measurement tool for its assessment.Study design. The translation, adaptation and validation process was subdivided into 3 stages. At the 1st stage English version of the PERMA-Profiler was translated into Russian. At the 2nd stage we assessed of the structural and convergent validity, reliability by the internal consistency of the items of the questionnaire. The main task of the 3rd stage of the study was to check the retest reliability of the PERMA-Profiler questionnaire by conducting a correlation analysis of the values of the questionnaire components obtained at the second and third stages.Participants. The main psychometric sample included 6229 participants aged between 18 and 62 years. All participants live in the Russian Federation.Method. The study used the questionnaires “Psychological Well-Being Scale” by K. Riff, “Well-being, Activity, Mood”, Subjective Feeling of Loneliness Scale by D. Russell, L. Peplo, M. Ferguson, “Life Satisfaction Scale” by E. Diner. Correlation analysis, confirmation factor analysis, analysis of scales by internal consistency and the half method were used for data processing and analysis cleavage.Results. The expected structure of the PERMA-Profiler questionnaire was confirmed. The scales of PERMA-Profiler had sufficient reliability and validity.Conclusions. PERMA-Profiler well-being questionnaire can be used for sociological, psychological and interdisciplinary studies of the psychological well-being of the individual.

Nutrition Consumption Frequencies Scale of Change: Validity and Reliability Study

The purpose of this study is to develop a scale that could evaluate the change in nutrition consumption frequencies of individuals’ scientifically in disease, natural disaster and private situations and to gain it to literature by conducting validity and reliability studies of this scale. In this context, an application has been made relating with COVID-19 pandemic period which we are still living through and 3107 individuals having different demographic features (gender, marital status, age, educational status, etc.) have participated in the research. First of all literature has been reviewed and a likert type of sketch scale has been prepared. Afterwards by getting the opinion of 11 experts, context validity works have been conducted. Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were applied for structural validity. Finally, the reliability of the scale was examined by test-retest and internal consistency coefficient. The scale, which consisted of a 47-item nutrition list at the beginning, has been updated as 10 sub-dimensions and 34 items after analysis. The general Cronbach's Alpha (α) reliability coefficient of the scale was calculated as α=0.722 (very reliable). It was concluded that the scale being prepared in the light of all these analyzes was a valid and reliable measurement tool for determining the change in the frequency of nutrition consumption of individuals. The scale can be jointly used in situations of chronic diseases such as cancer, Parkinson, diabetes, obesity, infectious diseases such as COVID-19, AIDS, swine flu, bird flu, natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and private situations such as pregnancy, breastfeeding, and disability.

Verification of the metric properties of E. E. Gordon’s Advanced Measures of Music Audiation among non-music major students in Croatia

The aim of the study was to investigate the metric properties of the Advanced Measures of Music Audiation test by E. E. Gordon (1989) on a sample of nonmusic major students in Croatia. The study was conducted with female students of early and preschool education at the Faculty of Education in Osijek (N = 235). The descriptive indicators of the AMMA test and the normality of the distribution of scores in the Croatian sample do not differ from the results obtained during the standardization on the American sample and the Polish sample of nonmusic major students. It was found that the reliability coefficient of the AMMA test, calculated using the split-half technique, was 0.87, and high intercorrelation values were obtained between the Total test and the Tonal (r = 0.88) and Rhythm (r = 0.87) subtests. Lower values of the difficulty level and discrimination power (< 0.20) are the weakest features of the application of the AMMA test to the Croatian sample. Considering the overall observed metric properties, it can be concluded that the AMMA test is a reliable measurement tool for the assessment of auditory musical abilities in nonmusic major students in Croatia.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE PERCEIVED MATERNAL NARCISSISM SCALE

A mother's pathological narcissistic traits can lead to several adverse childhood experiences. However, there is no measurement tool to assess these detrimental effects of maternal narcissism on the child's perception. The current study aims to develop and examine the psychometric properties of the Perceived Maternal Narcissism Scale (PMNS). In this article, we conducted three studies with 720 participants. In studies 1 and 2, we developed PMNS and evaluated its reliability and validity. Both EFA and CFA results provided evidence for 25 items and a five-factor solution (Lack of empathy, grandiosity, criticism, control-manipulation, and parentification-exploitation) to assess maternal narcissism from the child's perception. Moreover, PMNS scores were significantly associated with parental attitudes and parentification measures. The PMNS demonstrated good reliability in terms of internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Finally, study 3 obtained the PMNS scores from children associated with obtained Narcissistic Personality Inventory-16 and the Pathological Narcissism Inventory scores from their mothers. The results of three studies have shown that the PMNS is a valid and reliable measurement tool to assess mothers’ narcissistic traits from the childrens’ perception.

Development and Validation of a Culture-Sensitive Generic Health Literacy Scale in Turkish-Speaking Adults.

Background:Improving health literacy has become one of the most important public health-related goals at the global level; however, there is no clear consensus on measurement of health literacy. Despite numerous health literacy scales available in Turkish, none of the existing scales was originally developed and validated at a national level.Objective:This study aimed to develop and validate a culturally appropriate original health literacy scale (HLS) to be used as a reference for the Turkish-speaking literate adult population in Turkey and abroad.Methods:Two multidisciplinary workshops with more than 20 experts were conducted and a large item pool was developed. The first and second draft of the scale were pre-tested with 20 and 150 adults, respectively, from different age groups and socioeconomic levels in Ankara. The validity and reliability study of the revised scale (110 items plus 20 self-efficacy statements) was carried out with a household survey of 2,411 adults in 12 randomly selected provinces from 12 Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics Regions in Turkey. Explanatory and confirmatory factor analysis were performed. The fit indices were obtained. The item analysis was applied, and Cronbach's alpha statistics were obtained.Key Results:The scale was found to be both a valid and a reliable measurement tool to assess health literacy. Cronbach's alpha for two sub-dimensions (“disease prevention and health promotion” and “treatment and access to health services”) were 0.79 and 0.91, respectively. Construction validity indices were Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) = 0.043, Goodness of Fit Index (GFI) = 0.96, Normed Fit Index (NFI) = 0.95, and Adjusted Goodness of Fit Index (AGFI) = 0.95. The scale includes “self-efficacy” as an additional dimension (Cronbach's alpha = 0.83, RMSEA = 0.68, GFI = 0.94, NFI = 0.94, and AGFI) = 0.91).Conclusion:HLS is a valid and reliable measurement tool to assess health literacy of Turkish-speaking literate adults with a mixed (objective and subjective) assessment approach. [HLRP: Health Literacy Research and Practice. 2022;6(1):e2–e11.]Plain Language Summary:This study aimed to develop and validate a culturally sensitive original health literacy scale to be used as a reference scale for the Turkish-speaking literate adult population in Turkey and abroad. Study findings showed that HLS is both a valid and a reliable measurement tool to assess health literacy of Turkish-speaking literate adults.

Empathy Assessment Scale.

OBJECTIVEEmpathy is a prosocial ability and communication skill to feel, understand, and respond to emotions of others; it includes affective and cognitive behavioral aspects of therapeutic communication. For instance, physicians should communicate empathically with their patients. Thus, empathy levels of medical students should be improved during their education. It is important to comparatively evaluate the dimensions of empathy to have a clearer picture of this ability. The aim of this study is to determine the validity and reliability of the Empathy Assessment Scale (EAS) and its subscales.METHODSData were collected between October and December in 2021 from 651 students studying medicine in Istanbul Medeniyet University. Item pool of the scale was developed by the researcher based on the literature review. Two counseling psychologists, two clinical psychologist, and two psychiatrists evaluated the items to detect the face and content validity in the final application form. Both explanatory and confirmatory factor analyses (EFA and CFA) were carried out. The Toronto Empathy Questionnaire was also applied for concurrent validity. IBM SPSS 25 and AMOS 24 were utilized to analyze the construct and concurrent validities, internal consistency, and test-retest reliabilities.RESULTSKMO and Bartlett’s sphericity tests showed that the dataset was suitable for factor analyses (KMO=0.812, Chi-square=5535.718, df=78). A three-factor structure with 13 items was confirmed by EFA, 67.1% of the variance was explained by these three factors. According to CFA, the factor loads of the items varied between 0.39 and 0.98 and data model fit was suitable according to the fit indices (CFI=0.95, TLI=0.91, RMSEA=0.049, SRMR=0.055, and Chi-square/df=1.316). Concurrent validity of the scale was also confirmed by the Pearson correlation (r=0.467, p<0.001). The test-retest reliability values (r) within four weeks interval were all above 0.60 at 0.01 significance level. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were 0.845 (EAS total scale score, 13 items), 0.696 (social interaction subscale score, 4 items), 0.802 (cognitive behavior subscale score, 5 items), and 0.964 (emotional identification subscale score, 4 items).CONCLUSIONEAS is a valid and reliable measurement tool to assess the empathy levels of individuals in three dimensions: Social interaction, cognitive behavior, and emotional identification. EAS can be used to evaluate the empathy levels for research, educational, and other interventional purposes.

Akademik Liderlik Ölçeği’nin Geliştirilmesi: Geçerlik ve Güvenirlik Çalışması

Leadership is considered as an ancient and multidimensional concept. Due to its contribution to the development of academic staff, the creation of a common culture in line with the interests and needs of stakeholders and the vision of the institution, and the distribution of workload, performance evaluation and management of resource use, academic leadership is associated with the concepts of professional development, higher education culture, and higher education management. The 50-item draft scale prepared by reviewing the related literature was given to 57 faculty members in the piloting stage, 490 faculty members in the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) stage, and 200 faculty members in the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) stage. The sample of the study was chosen by using the maximum variation sampling method. The three sub-dimensions (professional development, higher education culture and higher education administration) obtained as a result of the EFA applied to reveal the construct validity of the scale were also confirmed by the CFA. The reliability of the scale was found by calculating the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and each of its three sub-dimensions was found to be highly reliable. The results show that the Academic Leadership Scale is a valid and reliable measurement tool that can be used to reveal the academic leadership perceptions of faculty members.

Validity and Reliability of the Turkish Version of the Family Empowerment Scale for Caregivers of Adults with Mental Health Issues (FES-AMT)

Objective: This study aimed to adapt the Family Empowerment Scale for family caregivers of adults with mental health issues to the Turkish context. Methods: The study data is collected from 1 January 2019 to 15 April 2020. The FES was originally developed by Koren et al.and, Kageyama et al. adapted it to assess the empowerment of family caregivers of adults with mental health issues, and they tested its validity and reliability. The study sample comprised 223 caregivers whose families of patients staying at the psychiatry clinic of a research and training hospital and those who had applied to the polyclinic. The scale has 34 items rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale. The scoring was subjected to a two-phase cluster analysis to obtain detailed information about the caregiver’s empowerment. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis was applied to examine the goodness of fit and construct validity of the structure, which was determined to consist of 3 factors by explanatory factor analysis. Factor loading range from 0.722 (item 20) to 0.008 (item 22). Exploratory factor analysis was conducted. Kaiser - Meyer - Olkin sampling adequacy value was determined as 0.894. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of internal consistency was .908. The scale has three subscales: Family, Service System, and Community/Political. The total variance explained by the scale was 47.78%. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the whole scale was .927.Conclusion: The Turkish version of the Family Empowerment Scale for caregivers of adults with mental health issues (FES-AMT) is a valid and reliable measurement tool. This scale can be used to evaluate patient relatives in the clinical practice of nurses.

Development of Online Trolling Scale: Validity and Reliability Study

This study aims to develop a valid and reliable measurement tool to determine trolling in online environments. Two different study groups were used in the study. The study group for the exploratory factor analysis consisted of 493 university students (72.2% female; 27.8% male). The study group for confirmatory factor analysis consisted of 690 university students (71.7% female; 28.3% male). As a result of the exploratory factor analysis, it was seen that it consisted of 16 items and 3 sub-dimensions that explained 56.80% of the variance. The model obtained after the exploratory factor analysis was tested with confirmatory factor analysis and it was determined that the fit index values were within acceptable limits. The criterion validity of the scale was carried out with the Revised Cyberbullying Scale for University Students. Whereas the Cronbach alpha value for the entire scale was .89 for all of the scales, the same was found for sub-dimensions as .85, .73, and .66. As a result, it can be stated that the scale is a valid and reliable measurement tool.