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Results for “construct validity”

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PubMed2006

[Development of a rating scale for self-efficacy of physical activity in frail elderly people].

AIM: The purpose of the present study was to 1) development the scale of the self-efficacy of physical activity in frail elderly people (SEPAF), 2) investigate the relationship of physical functions and instrumental activity of daily living (IADL). METHODS: The study included 187 community-dwelling elderly people. Subject's SEPAF (walking, stair-climbing, lifting a weight), physical functions (usual gait speed, maximum gait speed, knee extension muscle strength, hand grip) and IADL according to the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology Index of Competence (TMIG Index of Competence) were measured. The reliability of this scale was examined using Cronbach's alpha, and test-retest correlation. The criterion-related validity and the construct validity were evaluated relatively using physical functions and factor analysis. The score was compared between young-old and old-old and gender. The correlation between SEPAF and TMIG Index of Competence was examined. RESULTS: Cronbach's a showing internal consistency for these scales were 0.78-0.82. The score showed significant differences in gender and age group. There were significant relationships between SEPAF and physical functions, and the TMIG Index of Competence. CONCLUSION: The SEPAF was shown to be highly reliable. Few scale for frail elderly people exist, and it is useful to assess the self-efficacy of physical activities in frail and community-dwelling elderly people.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2003

A practical approach to quality improvement: the experience of the RNZCGP practice standards validation field trial.

AIM: This paper describes the development, implementation and validation of general practice standards, supported by a continuous quality improvement (CQI) process that teaches practice teams how to work together to identify and enhance the quality of care they provide. METHODS: Practice standards were developed through consensus by key stakeholders in general practice, pre-tested in four practices, and refined and piloted in 20 practices throughout New Zealand during 1999. A further field trial was undertaken to validate the standards and test the process of practice assessment. During 2000-2001, 74 practices volunteered to be assessed against the standards. Sixty one general practitioners, practice nurses and practice managers, nominated from independent practitioner associations (IPAs) or primary care organisations (PCOs), were trained to undertake the assessments. RESULTS: On five of 13 variables, no statistically significant differences at the 0.05 level were identified between the practices in the field trial and a random sample of practices studied by Kljakovic. The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (RNZCGP) standards were found to have excellent face validity and content validity, and good construct validity. Internal consistency was fair. Lessons from the evaluation have informed an improved version of the practice assessment tool. CONCLUSIONS: The validation field trial provided the RNZCGP with a framework and tool for an accreditation process based on the principles of CQI. The tool offers patients and other stakeholders a credible measure of quality and safety at the practice level through a process bridging quality control and quality improvement.

Accreditation↗

PubMed1989

The stressors and the post-traumatic stress syndrome after an industrial disaster.

Acute and subacute post-traumatic stress reactions are reported among 246 employees of an industrial factory which was severely damaged by an explosion and fire. Sixty-six A-subjects had narrow escape experiences (high stress exposure group), while 59 B-subjects were less severely exposed (medium stress exposure group). The 121 C-subjects were not present at work when the explosion occurred (low stress exposure group). A response rate of 97.6% was achieved at the primary examination, and a 100% response at the 7 months follow-up. The frequency and intensity of post-traumatic stress reactions were linked to the severity (A,B,C) of the stress exposure; specific post-traumatic anxiety reactions reported by more than 80% of A-subjects. The reactions appeared immediately or within hours, only 5% of A had delays of a few weeks. While 24.3% of A had State Anxiety Inventory scores 1 week post-disaster higher than 60, 8.5% of B and 2.5% of C had similar scores. Depressive reactions, social withdrawal, guilt, shame and irritability were less frequent, and appeared nearly always concomitant with anxiety symptoms. While the anxiety symptoms made up a tight knit syndrome, the less frequent non-anxiety symptoms were linked to the post-traumatic anxiety syndrome. The subjects' fears reflected the trauma, they feared inanimate objects, and there were hardly any paranoid ideations. The disaster exposure of the A and B but not of the C group members constituted a stressor which fulfilled the PTSD stressor criterion of the DSM III R. A minority of the C group developed a post-traumatic stress syndrome. After 7 months, all 30 post-traumatic stress reactions were more frequent and severe in the A than B group which again differed from the C group. Irritability was the only post-traumatic stress reaction that increased in frequency and intensity during the 7 months observation period. The findings represent evidence that supports the face validity, descriptive and construct validity of the PTSD diagnosis.

Accidents, Occupational↗

PubMed1995

Validity and reliability of a Five Dimensional Life Satisfaction Index.

Validity of the Five Dimensional Life Satisfaction Index (Hawkins, Eklund, Kim, & Greene, 1994), which was developed to measure life satisfaction as it applies to adults with mental retardation, was examined. The index was administered to 48 adults with moderate mental retardation. Results showed (a) alternate forms reliability and internal consistency, (b) convergent and discriminant validity, and (c) construct validity.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Information systems in critical care: a measure of their effectiveness.

Information systems in critical care settings are intended to assist critical care nurses in handling large volumes of multi-source, multi-variant patient data. These systems are known by many names, including patient data management systems (PDMS). The focus of this research was the development and testing of a generic, non-vendor-specific effectiveness measure for PDMS. Eight PDMS goals were identified and developed into the 79 item PDMS Effectiveness Measure. Testing included internal consistency reliability (.9098), test-retest reliability (r = .8941) and content validity (CVI = 0.66). Construct validity was estimated via contrasted groups analysis with significantly higher scores for nursing units with PDMS. The PDMS Effectiveness Measure is reliable, valid and useful for measuring the effectiveness of PDMS in critical care settings. Furthermore, PDMS do assist nurses in information handling.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1997

Validation of a Spanish version of the Childhood Health Assessment Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the reliability and validity of a Spanish version of the Childhood Health Assessment Questionnaire (CHAQ). METHODS: Fifty-five patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) [35 girls, 20 boys; mean age at onset (+/- SD) 11 +/- 3.3 yrs, mean disease duration 3.3 +/- 2.2 yrs] were included in an observational and cross sectional study that evaluated translation validity, cross sectional construct validity, and test-retest reliability of the Spanish version of the CHAQ. The questionnaire was administered to either patients or one of their parents, and results were correlated with the Steinbrocker functional class, the Juvenile Arthritis Functional Assessment Scale (JAFAS), and disease activity. RESULTS: The mean CHAQ score (mean 0.77, range 0.01-2.25) was found to correlate at different levels with Steinbrocker functional class (r = 0.62, p < 0.0001), JAFAS (r = 0.65, p < 0.0001), and disease activity score (r = 0.40, p < 0.0001). Test-retest and interobserver agreement had good correlations. CONCLUSION: The Spanish version of the CHAQ we studied is a reliable and valid tool for assessment of health status in Spanish speaking children with JRA.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

A randomized, controlled, prospective study validating the acquisition of percutaneous renal collecting system access skills using a computer based hybrid virtual reality surgical simulator: phase I.

PURPOSE: The need to develop new methods of surgical training combined with advances in computing has led to the development of sophisticated virtual reality surgical simulators. The PERC Mentortrade mark is designed to train the user in percutaneous renal collecting system access puncture. We evaluated and established face, content and construct validation of the simulator in this task. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 63 trainees underwent baseline testing on the simulator, consisting of percutaneous renal puncture followed by the introduction of a guidewire into the collecting system. Subjects were then randomized to an intervention arm, in which they underwent 2, 30-minute training sessions on the simulator, and a control arm, in which no further training was given, followed by repeat testing. Performance was assessed using a global rating scale and by virtual reality derived parameters. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the 2 groups with respect to baseline measures. Subjects who underwent training with the simulator demonstrated significant improvement in objective and subjective parameters compared to their baseline performance and compared to the untrained control group. Spearman rank correlations demonstrated a significant relationship between multiple parameters of the objective and subjective data. CONCLUSIONS: Training on the simulator improves virtual reality skills. It may allow trainees to develop the basic skills necessary to perform percutaneous renal collecting system access. Face and content validity were demonstrated and construct validity was supported by establishing convergent validity.

Computer Simulation↗

PubMed1997

The Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale: how does it compare with a "gold standard"?

UNLABELLED: Evaluating the effectiveness of interventions directed toward the treatment of preoperative anxiety in children has been hindered by the absence of a statistically valid measurement tool. In a previous investigation, we developed an instrument (Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale [YPAS]) that can be used to assess anxiety in children undergoing induction of anesthesia. The purpose of the present investigation was to modify and expand the applicability of the instrument to the preoperative holding area and to validate the modified instrument (m-YPAS) against a recognized "gold standard" (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Childrens [STAIC]). Videotapes of children in a preoperative holding area were analyzed by the investigators. The existing five categories of the YPAS were found to reflect most of the behaviors observed. Several items, however, were modified to describe new behaviors observed. Reliability analysis using weighted kappa statistics revealed that inter-observer agreement ranged from 0.68 to 0.86, whereas intraobserver weighted kappa ranged from 0.63 to 0.90. Concurrent validity between the YPAS and the STAIC was acceptable (P = 0.01, r = 0.79). Construct validity was high as assessed by increased m-YPAS scores from the preoperative holding area (28 +/- 8) to entering the operating room (35 +/- 12), to introduction of the anesthesia mask (43 +/- 15;F [1,36] = 0.6, P = 0.001]. Showing good to excellent observer reliability and high concurrent and construct validity, the m-YPAS proved to be an appropriate tool for assessing children's anxiety during the perioperative period. IMPLICATIONS: The absence of a statistically valid measurement tool that can be applied easily in perioperative settings hinders the evaluation of interventions directed toward treatment of preoperative anxiety in children. The authors describe the development of such a tool, the modified Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale.

Anesthesia↗

PubMed2003

The Fear of Dental Pain questionnaire: construction and validity.

Anxiety, fear and pain play an important role in the context of dental treatment and patients' well-being. The Fear of Pain Questionnaire (FPQ)-III is a recently developed self-report questionnaire measuring pain-related fear of a variety of painful stimuli. The present study was undertaken in order to develop a dental equivalent of the FPQ-III, called the Fear of Dental Pain questionnaire (FDP), to determine standard psychometric characteristics and to assess the instruments' validity. Four experienced dentists generated the initial pool of items and two methodologists constructed the initial questionnaire. Two studies were performed. In the study one, a sample of psychology freshmen (n = 309) was taken in order to analyse response patterns. In study two, a sample (n = 176) of patients, dental students and the general population was examined. Results from both studies were used to determine reliability and validity. High internal consistency (0.93) with satisfactory test-retest reliability (0.75) was obtained. Factor analysis revealed a strong one-dimensional factor underlying almost all items. Finally, the proposed FDP version was related to a measure of dental fear and a general measure of fear of pain. All a priori hypotheses were confirmed, thereby providing evidence for the validity of the FDP. The FPD may prove to be a clinically useful tool in the dental setting, and a potentially important covariate in dental pain perception research.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

Measuring treatment outcome by the Beck Depression Inventory.

The construct validity of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) in measuring treatment outcome is assessed in 103 psychiatric inpatients. In this context, construct validity means that the BDI measures the same construct in repeated measurement and that the change scores can be explained by treatment effects. In confirmatory factor analyses, only the first factor proved to be stable. In accordance with other studies, the sensitivity to therapeutic change in long-term intervals of several weeks could be confirmed. Significant changes in a short-term interval of 1 day in the non-endogenously depressed patients indicate an overreactivity of the BDI to change which cannot be explained by treatment effects or mood changes.

Adjustment Disorders↗

PubMed2006

Validation of a 7-point Global Overall Symptom scale to measure the severity of dyspepsia symptoms in clinical trials.

BACKGROUND: Currently there is no consensus on the optimal method to measure the severity of dyspepsia symptoms in clinical trials. AIM: To validate the 7-point Global Overall Symptom scale. METHODS: The Global Overall Symptom scale uses a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 = no problem to 7 = a very severe problem. Validation was performed in two randomized-controlled trials (n = 1121 and 512). Construct validity: Global Overall Symptom was compared with the Quality of Life in Reflux And Dyspepsia, Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale, Reflux Disease Questionnaire and 10 specific symptoms using Spearman correlation coefficients. Test-retest reliability: The Intraclass Correlation Coefficient was calculated for patients with stable dyspepsia defined by no change in Overall Treatment Effect score over two visits. Responsiveness: effect size and standardized response mean were also calculated. RESULTS: Construct validity: Change in Global Overall Symptom score correlated significantly with Quality of Life for Reflux And Dyspepsia, Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale, Reflux Disease Questionnaire and specific symptoms (all P < 0.0002). Reliability: The Intraclass Correlation Coefficient was 0.62 (n = 205) and 0.42 (n = 270). Responsiveness: There was a positive correlation between change in Global Overall Symptom and change in symptom severity. The effect size and standardized response mean were 1.1 and 2.1, respectively. CONCLUSION: The Global Overall Symptom scale is a simple, valid outcome measure for dyspepsia treatment trials.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Measuring the meaning of disability in rheumatoid arthritis: the Personal Impact Health Assessment Questionnaire (PI HAQ).

BACKGROUND: Measurement of disability in rheumatoid arthritis is often used to support treatment decisions and outcome assessments, but is used without reference to the impact of disability on individual patients. OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate a scale to measure individual values for functions, which is used to weight the level of an individual patient's functional loss and thus calculate the personal impact of disability. METHODS: In four linked studies, first the phraseology for values was explored to develop a stem question for the value scale couched in terms patients understand (face validity). Then short and long versions of the value scale were compared (content validity) and tests of internal consistency and short term reliability undertaken (criterion validity). Finally, the value scale was examined for long term reliability and agreement with expected variables (criterion and construct validity), after which personal impact scores were calculated and their construct validity examined. RESULTS: Patients understand the concept of values, and a positively phrased stem question was developed for the value scale, for which a short version was reasonably equivalent to a long version. The value scale was reliable over one week (96% changed by <1 point) with positive interitem correlation. Reasonable six and 12 month reliability was shown (52% changed by <0.5 points), and the value scale was independent of disability and clinical, psychological, personality, and social support variables. Personal impact scores were then calculated by using the value scores to weight disability scores. Impact scores varied widely between patients of similar disability. Personal impact for disability showed convergent validity with dissatisfaction with disability, perceived increase in disability, increased disease activity, worse psychological status, low social support, and time trade off for disability. It discriminated between patients with low and high dissatisfaction with disability, life satisfaction, depression, pain, and helplessness. CONCLUSION: This individualised personal impact scale should lend meaning to disability scores, improving the interpretation of clinical and research data.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Construction and validation of the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS).

The Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS), an observational assessment scale, was constructed to measure gross motor maturation in infants from birth through independent walking. Based upon the literature, 58 items were generated and organized into four positions: prone, supine, sitting and standing. Each item describes three aspects of motor performance--weight-bearing, posture and antigravity movements. Content validation of the instrument was accomplished through a mail survey of Canadian pediatric physical therapists and consultation with an international panel of experts. Five hundred and six infants, age-stratified from birth through 18 months, participated in the reliability and validity testing of the AIMS. In addition, 20 infants who were experiencing abnormal motor development and 50 infants at risk for motor disorders were assessed and compared with the results of the full-term sample. Results to be presented include: 1) test-retest and inter-rater reliability estimates; 2) correlations between the AIMS and the Bayley and Peabody motor scores; and 3) scaling of the items along the age continuum for normal motor development.

Child Development↗

PubMed2003

Validation of two global impression questionnaires for incontinence.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess the construct validity of two global assessment questions, the Patient Global Impression of Severity and of Improvement, in female patients with stress urinary incontinence. STUDY DESIGN: This was a secondary analysis of data from two double-blind, placebo-controlled studies that evaluated duloxetine for the treatment of predominant stress urinary incontinence in the United States (n = 1133 patients). Assessment variables included incontinence episode frequency, the Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire results, fixed volume (400 mL) stress pad test results, and the Patient Global Impression of Improvement and of Severity question results. RESULTS: Spearman correlation coefficients were 0.36, 0.20, and -0.50 among the Patient Global Impression of Severity question and incontinence episode frequency, stress pad test, and Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire results, respectively (all P <.0001). Mean incontinence episode frequency and median stress pad test results increased and mean Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire results decreased with increasing Patient Global Impression of Severity question severity levels. Similarly, significant (P <.0001) correlations were observed between the Patient Global Impression of Improvement question response categories and the three independent measures of improvement in stress urinary incontinence (0.49, 0.33, and -0.43 with incontinence episode frequency, stress pad test, and Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire results, respectively). As with the Patient Global Impression of Severity question, differences in mean changes for Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire and median percent changes for incontinence episode frequency and stress pad test among the Patient Global Impression of Improvement question response categories were highly significant (P <.0001). These relationships indicate appropriate and significant associations between the Patient Global Impression of Severity and of Improvement questions and the three independent measures of stress urinary incontinence severity and improvement, respectively. CONCLUSION: The Patient Global Impression of Severity and of Improvement question responses were correlated significantly with incontinence episode frequency, stress pad test, and Incontinence Quality of Life Questionnaire measures, which established the construct validity of these two global assessment questions for baseline severity and treatment response, respectively.

Body Mass Index↗

PubMed2003

Preliminary reliability and validity of a family caregiver conflict scale for stroke.

Recovery from stroke is a challenging process for stroke survivors and their families. Assessing family conflict may be useful in guiding interventions to reduce caregiver distress. The purpose of this study was to assess preliminary reliability and validity data for a 15-item family caregiver conflict scale [FCCS] for stroke. Construct validity was assessed using subscales from the family assessment device: communication, problem solving, general family functioning, and a perceived criticism scale. Data were pooled from three studies of caregivers of stroke survivors (total N=93). Internal consistency for the FCCS was adequate (>0.70). Higher family conflict was related to more ineffective family communication, general family functioning, and higher perceived criticism (p > or =0.05). Nonspouse caregivers reported more family conflict than spouse caregivers. The FCCS appears to have adequate internal consistency and construct validity and may provide information about family conflicts around stroke recovery and direction for family-focused interventions.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Validity of a single-item measure of stress symptoms.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study was to investigate the content, criterion, and construct validity of a single-item measure of stress symptoms. Such a concise measure would be useful in monitoring stress at work. The criteria for validity were convergence with conceptionally close measures, the plausibility of associations with health and work characteristics, and the power to discriminate between groups. METHODS: Four sets of independent cross-sectional data were used. The first data set, from Finland Post, comprised symptoms of ill health and mental resources (N=1014). The second, from four Nordic countries, included well-known validated scales on exhaustion, mental health, sleep, vitality, and optimism, and therefore the convergence between the measures could be studied (N=1015). The third, from a metal factory, included three indicators of health and four work characteristics (N=773). The fourth, representing the Finnish working population, described group differences in stress symptoms (N=2156) and allowed comparison with a study on emotional exhaustion in the working population. Distributions, correlations, and factor analysis were used for the study. RESULTS: The stress-symptoms item converged with items on psychological symptoms and sleep disturbances and with validated measures of well-being. It had theoretically grounded associations with indicators of health and psychosocial work characteristics, and it discriminated between gender and age groups and industrial branches in accordance with the validated emotional exhaustion scale. CONCLUSIONS: The stress-symptoms item showed satisfactory content, criterion, and construct validity for group-level analysis. It is suggested that the longer scales used to measure psychological stress can be replaced with it in survey research.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Development of the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a self-report tinnitus handicap measure that is brief, easy to administer and interpret, broad in scope, and psychometrically robust. DESIGN: A standardization study of a self-report tinnitus handicap measure was conducted to determine its internal consistency reliability and convergent and construct validity. SETTING: Audiology clinics in tertiary care centers in two sites. PARTICIPANTS: In the first investigation, 84 patients reporting tinnitus as their primary complaint or secondary to hearing loss completed the 45-item alpha version of the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI). In the second investigation, 66 subjects also reporting tinnitus completed the 25-item beta version. OUTCOME MEASURES: Convergent validity was assessed using another measure of perceived tinnitus handicap (Tinnitus Handicap Questionnaire). Construct validity was assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory, Modified Somatic Perception Questionnaire, symptom rating scales (annoyance, sleep disruption, depression, and concentration), and perceived tinnitus pitch and loudness judgments. RESULTS: From the alpha version of the THI, we derived a 25-item beta version with the items grouped into functional, emotional, and catastrophic subscales. The total scale yielded excellent internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha = .93). No significant age or gender effects were seen. Weak correlations were observed between the THI and the Beck Depression Inventory, Modified Somatic Perception Questionnaire, and pitch and loudness judgments. Significant correlations were found between the THI and the symptom rating scales. CONCLUSION: The THI is a self-report measure that can be used in a busy clinical practice to quantify the impact of tinnitus on daily living.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2001

Coping and catastrophizing in chronic pain: a psychometric analysis and comparison of two measures.

We analyzed and compared the psychometric properties of two measures of strategiesfor coping with pain:The Coping Strategies Questionnaire (CSQ) and the Cognitive Coping Strategies Inventory (CCSI). The CSQ and CCSI were repeatedly administered to 30 chronic pain patients. Several subscales of both measures showed inadequate internal consistency, and test-retest (one week interval) reliability lower than 0.7. For each inventory, moderate to strong intercorrelations between several subscales were observed. The Catastrophizing subscale was the only subscale for which there was clear evidence of construct validity. Results indicated that both measures showed similar psychometric difficulties, and question the construct validity of subscales other than Catastrophizing. Catastrophizing, however, more closely reflects appraisal processes than a coping strategy per se. We suggest that measures that use more parsimonious and empirically derived coping strategy subscales and that also assess appraisal factors would assist in advancing our understanding of coping with chronic pain.

Adaptation, Psychological↗