[Cellular phone dependence tendency of female university students].

OBJECTIVE To assess the reliability and validity of a cellular phone dependence questionnaire (CPDQ) we designed. METHODS The CPDQ, a 20-item self-rated scale, was given to 168 healthy female university students (mean age, 21.7 years). Each question uses a 0 to 3 response scale; a higher score indicates greater dependence. The reliability and validity of the CPDQ were assessed by an internal consistency estimate and a factor analysis, respectively. Question scores were then summed to provide a cellular phone dependence score ranging from 0 to 60. RESULTS The reliability coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) for the CPDQ was 0.86. In addition, six significant factors were extracted by factor analysis for the 20 items of the CPDQ. The cellular phone dependence score showed a normal distribution (Kolmogorov-Smirnov's test), and the average (+/- SD) was 33.2 +/- 8.7. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that the CPDQ is a useful scale for rating cellular phone dependence.