OBJECTIVES To demonstrate the use of Rasch analysis by assessing the appropriateness of utilizing the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) total score (HADS-14) as a measure of psychological distress. DESIGN Cross-sectional, using Rasch analysis. METHODS The HADS was administered to 296 patients attending an out-patient musculoskeletal rehabilitation program. Rasch analysis was cond...

BACKGROUND The Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RDQ) is one of the most frequently used and recommended outcome measures for patients with low back pain. OBJECTIVE To examine the fit of data from 4 different versions of the RDQ to a Rasch model in a Norwegian sample of patients with chronic low back pain and degenerative lumbar osteoarthritis. METHODS Patients with chronic low back p...

Black university students scored significantly higher than White students on the Maudsley Obsessional Compulsive Inventory (MOCI). They tended to endorse more Cleaning and Checking subscale items in the pathological direction. Subsequent analyses examined whether this finding is a reflection of valid group differences in the prevalence of OCD or a psychometric artifact. Structured interviews we...

BACKGROUND Heart disease knowledge is an important concept for health education, yet there is lack of evidence on proper validated instruments used to measure levels of heart disease knowledge in the Malaysian context. METHODS A cross-sectional, survey design was conducted to examine the psychometric properties of the adapted English version of the Heart Disease Knowledge Questionnaire (HDKQ)...

BACKGROUND Item response models using exponential modelling are more sensitive than classical linear methods for making predictions from psychological questionnaires. OBJECTIVE To assess whether they can also be used for making predictions from quality of life questionnaires and clinical and laboratory diagnostic-tests. METHODS Of 1000 anginal patients assessed for quality of life and 1350 ...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to design a brief questionnaire to measure fears about recurrence and health in cancer survivors. Research involving fear of recurrence has been increasing, indicating that it is an important concern among cancer survivors. METHODS We developed and tested a six-item instrument, the Assessment of Survivor Concerns (ASC). Construct validity was examined ...

BACKGROUND Few studies have employed the item response theory in examining reliability. We conducted this study to examine the effect of Rating Scale Categories (RSCs) on the reliability and fit statistics of the Malay Spiritual Well-Being Scale, employing the Rasch model. METHODS The Malay Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) with the original six; three and four newly structured RSCs was distr...

BACKGROUND In postgraduate training, there is a need to continuously assess the learning and working conditions to optimize learning. Students or trainees respond to the learning climate as they perceive it. The Dutch Residency Educational Climate Test (D-RECT) is a learning climate measurement tool with well-substantiated validity. However, it was originally designed for Dutch postgraduate tra...

Article history: Received 12 July 2016 Received in revised form 5 September 2016 Accepted 30 September 2016 Available online xxxx This study investigated factor structure, reliability, and criterion validity of the original 12-item version aswell as an abbreviated 10-item version of Mroczek and Kolarz' Negative and Positive Affect Scale (NAPAS). The sample (N=2718)was drawn from the thirdwave o...

OBJECTIVE The Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) is one of the most frequently used diagnostic self-report scales for screening, diagnosis and severity assessment of anxiety disorder. Its psychometric properties from the view of the Item Response Theory paradigm have rarely been investigated. We aimed to close this gap by analyzing the GAD-7 within a large sample of primary care patient...