Assessing nature exposure: a study on the reliability and validity of a Portuguese version of the nature exposure scale.

Introduction: Engaging with nature has been widely acknowledged for its positive impact on well-being. Traditionally, assessments of nature exposure focus on estimating green space exposure and outdoor time. However, the Nature Exposure Scale (NES) offers a unique approach by evaluating the quality of nature experiences, encompassing both deliberate and spontaneous encounters. Methods: This study aimed to assess the validity and reliability of the NES in the context of Portugal. Exploratory Factor Analysis (PCA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were employed to examine the underlying structure of the scale. Additionally, reliability assessments, along with tests of convergent and divergent validity, were conducted. Data were collected from a sample of 558 adults and 241 adolescents between 2016 and 2018. Results: The findings revealed strong internal consistency of the NES, supported by acceptable correlation values and robust factor loadings within a unidimensional model. The scale effectively predicted variations in nature exposure across diverse professional activities. Discussion: In summary, the 4-item NES emerged as a reliable tool for assessing nature exposure in various settings, effectively bridging a gap in the Portuguese context. The scale demonstrated potential for cross-cultural research and was particularly adept at predicting nature exposure in different professional contexts. The results suggest that the NES can enhance our understanding of the impact of nature on well-being in diverse cultural settings. Conclusion: The study underscores the reliability of the NES in assessing nature exposure in Portugal, paving the way for further exploration in Portuguese-speaking regions. The scale holds promise for advancing research on the relationship between nature and well-being, contributing valuable insights across different cultural contexts.

The Psychosocial Risks and Impacts in the Workplace Assessment Tool: Construction and Psychometric Evaluation.

Psychosocial risks constitute one of the major contemporary challenges for occupational health and safety. As early identification is the first step towards psychosocial risk management, the psychometric tool presented in the paper has been constructed in order to measure psychosocial risks as well as their impacts. The Psychosocial Risks and Impacts in the Workplace Assessment Tool (PRIWA) has been developed in Greek during the early years of the economic crisis. The paper presents the tool and the studies that were conducted to evaluate its psychometric characteristics. Six large samples of employees from many different Greek companies were administered the PRIWA and other tools. The results of the exploratory factor analysis demonstrated a seven-factor structure of the PRIWA, which was later confirmed by confirmatory factor analysis. Analyses were also performed to test internal consistency, item-to-scale homogeneity, and concurrent validity of the PRIWA. The results indicated that PRIWA is a reliable and valid psychometric tool, which gives its users the opportunity to conduct research, develop prevention plans, and/or design customized interventions.

Criminal Responsibility Scale: Development and Validation of a Psychometric Tool Structured in Clinical Vignettes for Criminal Responsibility Assessments in Brazil.

Criminal responsibility assessment is undertaken by psychologists or psychiatrists to assess offenders' legal capacities, which vary among countries or regional legislations. There are two psychometric tools (i.e., checklists) validated for criminal responsibility assessment: the Roger Criminal Responsibility Scale, and the rating scale of criminal responsibility for mentally disordered offenders. Despite the existence of psychometric tools structured in clinical vignettes for evaluating legal capacities, none serve the purpose of assessing criminal responsibility. This study aims to validate a novel psychometric tool structured in vignettes for the assessment of criminal responsibility called the "Criminal Responsibility Scale." We applied the tool to 88 defendants referred for criminal responsibility assessment in a forensic medical institute in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from December 2017 to December 2018. The validity of the Criminal Responsibility Scale and subscales were evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis. The two-factor solution proved satisfactory and met the needs for practical application of the tool (Kaiser-Meyer-Oklin = 0.82; p < 0.001). Moreover, the inter-rater reliability was evaluated by comparing the tool's final score with that of the expert's conclusion in each case and was found to be satisfactory (k = 0.667-1.0), with a resulting cutoff point of 30.50 (±2) and a Youden index of 0.509. Hence, the Criminal Responsibility Scale is an effective psychometric tool for assessments of criminal responsibility that may encourage future research in assessments of legal capacity with clinical vignette-based psychometric instruments.

Translation and validation of the Arabic version of the Psychosocial Impact of Dental Aesthetics Questionnaire (PIDAQ).

OBJECTIVES: To develop and test the validity and reliability of an Arabic version of the psychosocial impact of dental aesthetics questionnaire (PIDAQ). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The original English version was translated into Arabic, back-translated, pre-tested, and cross-culturally adapted before being administered to 205 individuals aged between 18-30 years from Medina, Saudi Arabia. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to test internal consistency, and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to assess test-retest reliability. Construct validity was assessed using factor analysis, and convergent validity was tested by comparing PIDAQ scores to the aesthetic components of the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) and Aesthetic Component of the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN-AC), while discriminant validity was assessed by comparing PIDAQ scores to participants' self-evaluation of orthodontic treatment need. Gender and age differences in the PIDAQ score were assessed. RESULTS: Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.940, corrected item-total correlation coefficients were between 0.509 and 0.719, and the ICC was 0.937. Principal component factor analysis extracted three domains, and factor loading ranged from 0.563 to 0.843. Total PIDAQ score and subscale scores had significant correlations with the DAI and IOTN-AC. The questionnaire discriminated well between participants who had a perceived need for orthodontic treatment and those with no perceived need. There were no significant age or gender differences in participants' PIDAQ scores. CONCLUSIONS: The Arabic version of the PIDAQ had excellent psychometric properties with sufficient reliability and validity to be used for the assessment of the orthodontic-related quality of life in young Arab adults.

Validation of the swimming competence questionnaire for children.

Two studies were employed to test the reliability and validity of the Swimming Competence Questionnaire (SCQ) among primary school children. Study 1 was a cross-sectional survey in 4959 primary school children. Study 2 was a pre-post-test quasi-experiment among 1609 primary school children who underwent a 20-lesson learn-to-swim programme. In Study 1, exploratory structural equation modelling revealed excellent goodness-of-fit and scale reliability for a two-factor model comprising distance and skill factors, which supported the construct and convergent validity. SCQ scores were significantly and positively correlated with swimming outcomes (i.e., self-efficacy, intention, swimming frequency), which supported SCQ's concurrent and criterion validity. Average variance extracted for the SCQ factors exceeded cut-off criteria supporting discriminant validity. In Study 2, pre-test SCQ scores correlated significantly and positively with the SCQ scores, self-efficacy, intention, and swimming frequency at post-test, which supported SCQ's test-retest reliability and predictive validity. Positive intraclass correlation between SCQ scores and coach ratings at post-test provided evidence for SCQ's inter-rater reliability. SCQ scores significantly improved at post-test, which supported SCQ's ecological validity. In conclusion, findings indicate that the SCQ is a valid and reliable measure to assess primary school children's swimming competence, in terms of swimming distance and basic water survival skills.

Malocclusion-Related Quality of Life Questionnaire (MRQoLQ): Development and validation of a new psychometric tool for older adolescents with malocclusion

ABSTRACT Objective: To develop and validate a new psychometric tool for assessing malocclusion-related quality of life among older Indian adolescents. Methods: Item generation involved analysis of existing validated tools, followed by development of new items using various qualitative steps. A draft item pool of 41 questions was initially generated and subjected to item reduction through sequential steps involving two clinical studies to ensure reliability and validity. 431 subjects aged between 15 to 18 years took part in the validation study. Principal component analysis with varimax rotation was performed to get a psychometric tool with good factorial structure and maximum variance. Results: Rotated component matrix resulted in a 20 item psychometric tool containing 4 domains with a total variance of 61.57%. Inter item, item total correlation and Cronbach α (α = 0.88) ensured good reliability. A positive correlation of the scale with global question ensured convergent validity. Independent t test showed statistically significant difference (p< 0.05) between mean score of IOTN-DHC and DAI with MRQoLQ, ensuring good construct validity. Conclusions: The newly developed psychometric tool is named as Malocclusion-Related Quality of Life Questionnaire (MRQoLQ) having 20 questions, including 2 socioeconomic items. The scale showed good reliability and initial validity, hence can be used among older adolescents with malocclusion to assess their malocclusion-related quality of life.

RESUMO Objetivo: desenvolver e validar uma nova ferramenta psicométrica para avaliar o impacto da má oclusão na qualidade de vida em pacientes indianos ao final da adolescência. Método: o delineamento do conjunto de itens desse questionário envolveu a análise de ferramentas existentes já validadas, seguida da criação de novos itens, usando vários passos qualitativos. Um conjunto provisório de itens, com 41 perguntas, foi inicialmente formulado e submetido à redução de itens por meio de passos sequenciais envolvendo dois estudos clínicos, para garantir sua validade e confiabilidade. Nesse estudo de validação, participaram 431 pacientes com idades entre 15 e 18 anos. Foi realizada uma análise do componente principal pelo método Varimax, para se obter uma ferramenta psicométrica com boa estrutura fatorial e variância máxima. Resultados: a matriz, após as rotações dos fatores, resultou em uma ferramenta psicométrica com 20 itens, contendo 4 domínios, com uma variância total de 61,57%. As correlações interitens e item-total e o alfa de Cronbach (α = 0,88) confirmaram uma boa confiabilidade. Uma correlação positiva da escala com a questão global assegurou validade convergente. O teste t independente demonstrou diferença estatisticamente significativa (p< 0,05) entre a pontuação média do IOTN-DHC e do DAI com o MRQoLQ, assegurando uma validade bem construída. Conclusões: essa nova ferramenta psicométrica desenvolvida, denominada Questionário "Impacto da Má Oclusão na Qualidade de Vida" (MRQoLQ, do inglês Malocclusion-Related Quality of Life Questionnaire), com 20 perguntas, incluindo 2 itens socioeconômicos, demonstrou boa confiabilidade e validade inicial. Assim, pode ser utilizado em pacientes no final da adolescência, para avaliar o impacto da má oclusão em sua qualidade de vida.

Measuring the outcomes of volunteering for education: development and pilot of a tool to assess healthcare professionals' personal and professional development from international volunteering.

OBJECTIVE: The development and pilot of a self-report questionnaire, to assess personal and professional development of healthcare professionals gained through experiences in low-income and middle-income countries. DESIGN: The instrument was developed from a core set of the outcomes of international placements for UK healthcare professionals. Principal component analysis and multidimensional item response theory were conducted using results of a cross-sectional pilot study to highlight items with the best psychometric properties. SETTING: Questionnaires were completed both online and in multiple UK healthcare professional events face-to-face. PARTICIPANTS: 436 healthcare professional participants from the UK (with and without international experience) completed a 110-item questionnaire in which they assessed their knowledge, skills and attitudes. MEASURES: The 110-item questionnaire included self-report questions on a 7-point Likert scale of agreement, developed from the core outcome set, including items on satisfaction, clinical skills, communication and other important healthcare professional knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours. Item reduction led to development of the 40-item Measuring the Outcomes of Volunteering for Education-Tool. Internal consistency was evaluated by the Cronbach's α coefficient. Exploratory analysis investigated the structure of the data using principal component analysis and multivariate item response theory. RESULTS: Exploratory analysis found 10 principal components that explained 71.80% of the variance. Components were labelled 'attitude to work, adaptability, adapting communication, cultural sensitivity, difficult communication, confidence, teaching, management, behaviour change and life satisfaction'. Internal consistency was acceptable for the identified components (α=0.72-0.86). CONCLUSIONS: A 40-item self-report questionnaire developed from a core outcome set for personal and professional development from international placements was developed, with evidence of good reliability and validity. This questionnaire will increase understanding of impact of international placements, facilitating comparisons of different types of experience. This will aid decision making about whether UK healthcare professionals should be encouraged to volunteer internationally and in what capacity.

Assessing emotional aspects of midwives' intrapartum care: Development of the emotional availability and responsiveness in intrapartum care scale.

BACKGROUND/PROBLEM: Emotional care underpins women's positive experiences during labour andbirth but is under-researched. Applying an attachment theory approach may inform the measurement of emotional aspects of maternity care. OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate a self - report measure for midwives to assess their emotionally attuned intrapartum care. METHODS: A staged approach to tool development was followed. Item generation was informed by a critical review of the literature and expert review. Following a pilot test, the draft scale was psychometrically assessed. Principal component analysis with varimax rotation was used to establish construct validity. Cronbach's alpha determined internal reliability. Concurrent validity was tested with the 'empathic concern' and the 'personal distress' subscales on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. The study was conducted with midwives (n = 705) who are members of the Australian College of Midwives. FINDINGS: The Cronbach's alpha for the scale was 0.88. Principal component analysis revealed a one- factor solution. Significant but low correlations with Interpersonal Reactivity Index subscales of 'empathic concern' (rho = .256, p <.001) and 'personal distress' (rho = -.249, p<.001) confirmed concurrent validity. CONCLUSION: The Emotional Availability and Responsiveness in Intrapartum Care Scale appears to be a valid and reliable measure of emotional aspects of midwives' caregiving. An Attachment Theory approach validates women's perspectives and elucidates our understanding of the importance of emotional labour support.

How to develop and validate a questionnaire for orthodontic research.

The use of psychometric tools to assess various psychological aspects of malocclusion and treatment is increasing in orthodontics. Mere evaluation of an orthodontic patient with normative criteria is not enough; instead, the psychological status should be assessed using a questionnaire. Many generic and few condition-specific tools are available for assessing quality of life (QoL) in orthodontics. The steps involved in the development of such tools are complex and unknown to many. This article outlines the methodology involved in the development and validation of a psychometric tool for dental and orthodontic use. It also helps the clinician to translate and cross-culturally adapt an existing QoL tool to a different setting.

Sexual functioning and quality of life of Hong Kong Chinese women with infertility problem.

Infertility is estimated to affect 10-15% of couples in industrialized countries and many of them are under tremendous stress. Stress can lead to poor quality of life and sexual dysfunction in general, but little is known about their prevalence in infertile women. We, therefore, conducted this cross-sectional survey in two primary care subfertility clinics between August 2012 and April 2013. A total of 159 women completed two validated Chinese questionnaires: Female Sexual Function Index and core Fertility Quality of Life. The overall Female Sexual Function Index score (mean ± SD) of the whole group was 24.99 ± 4.22. Using the urban Chinese cut-off, the prevalence of female sexual dysfunction, low desire, arousal disorder, lubrication disorder, orgasmic disorder and sexual pain were 32.5%, 15.7%, 19.3%, 22.3%, 33.1% and 15.1%. The core Fertility Quality of Life score of the whole group was 59.76 ± 13.59 and the subgroup of infertile women with sexual dysfunction (n = 50) had significantly lower mean core Fertility Quality of Life score than those without sexual dysfunction (n = 109) (55.03 versus 61.88) (p = 0.005). Among the subscales, the relational score had the strongest correlation with sexual dysfunction. Infertile women with sexual dysfunction had significantly worse quality of life especially in the relational aspect.

Development of the assessment for collaborative environments (ACE-15): A tool to measure perceptions of interprofessional "teamness".

As interprofessional education moves from classroom to clinical settings, assessing clinical training sites for a high level of "teamness" to ensure optimal learning environments is critical but often problematic ahead of student placement. We developed a tool (Assessment for Collaborative Environments, or ACE), suitable for a range of clinical settings and health professionals, that allows rapid assessment of a clinical practice's teamwork qualities. We collected evidence of tool validity including content, response process, internal structure, and convergent validity. Expert review and cognitive interviews allowed reduction of the initial 30-item tool to 15 items (the ACE-15). Data from 192 respondents from 17 clinical professions and varied clinical settings (inpatient, ambulatory, urban, and rural) were used for factor analysis, which resulted in a single factor solution. Internal consistency reliability Cronbach's alpha was high at 0.91. Subgroup analysis of 121 respondents grouped by their clinical teams (n = 16 teams) showed a wide range of intra-team agreement. Data from a subsequent sample of 54 clinicians who completed the ACE-15 and a measure of team cohesion indicated convergent validity, with a correlation of the tools at r = 0.81. We conclude that the ACE-15 has acceptable psychometric properties and promising utility for assessing interprofessional teamness in clinical training sites that are settings for learners, and, in addition may be useful for team development.