Clinical Interventions in Aging (Apr 2018)
The design and evaluation of psychometric properties for a questionnaire on elderly abuse by family caregivers among older adults on hemodialysis
Abstract
Amaneh Mahmoudian,1 Razieh Torabi Chafjiri,2 Atefeh Alipour,3 Abbas Shamsalinia,4 Fatemeh Ghaffari5 1Nursing Care Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran; 2Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rudsar Shahid Ansari Hospital, Rudsar, Guilan, Iran; 3Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Imam Sajjad Hospital, Ramsar, Mazandaran, Iran; 4Nursing Care Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran; 5Nursing Care Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran Introduction: Older adults with chronic disease are more vulnerable to abuse. Early and accurate detection of the elderly abuse phenomenon can help identify health-promoting solutions for the elderly, their family, and society. The purpose of this study was to design and evaluate the psychometric properties of a questionnaire on elderly abuse by family caregivers among older adults on hemodialysis.Methods: Qualitative and quantitative research methodologies were used to develop the questionnaire. The item pool was compiled from literature reviews and the Delphi method. The literature reviews comprised 22 studies. The psychometric properties of the questionnaire were verified using face, content, and construct validity, and the reliability was tested using Cronbach’s alpha reliability.Results: A 57-item questionnaire was developed after the psychometric evaluation. The Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin index and Bartlett’s test of sphericity showed reliable results. Seven components from the exploratory content analysis including psychological misbehavior, authority deprivation, physical misbehavior, financial misbehavior, being abandoned, caring neglect, and emotional misbehavior explained 74.769% of the total variance. Cronbach’s alpha was 0.98 and the interclass correlation coefficient was r=0.91 responding to the items twice (p<0.001), which shows a high level of tool stability.Conclusion: This study developed a questionnaire to assess elderly abuse by family caregivers among older adults on hemodialysis. It is recommended as a mini scale that can be used both in statistical and practical studies, and that is valid and reliable. Nurses or other health care providers can use it in health centers, dialysis centers, or at the house of the patient. Keywords: elderly abuse, family caregivers, older adults, hemodialysis, reliability, validity, psychometric testing
