Translation and adaptation of the Indoor Environmental Quality questionnaire to Brazilian Portuguese

Abstract

Introduction: Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) impacts well-being, performance, and mental and physical health. A questionnaire for assessing occupants' perception of IEQ was developed in English. This study aimed to translate this instrument into Brazilian Portuguese and adapt it for the Brazilian population. Methods: The translation and adaptation process consisted of forward translation, adjustment, back translation, back translation review, harmonization, two cognitive debriefings, and finalization. Results: The final translated version included new questions and changed the scale to a visual-analogue format. The clarity assessment showed that after cognitive debriefings all questions displayed satisfactory scores, with the majority rated higher than 9 in a 0-10 scale. Conclusions: The Brazilian Portuguese version of the IEQ questionnaire is a simple tool that can be employed in biomedical and building research to investigate the association of the perceived indoor environmental quality with health-related parameters, as well as in architecture, engineering, and management projects.