TY - JOUR
T1 - Cross-cultural validation of the German version of the Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (4DSQ) in multimorbid elderly people
AU - Exner, Anna
AU - Kleinstäuber, Maria
AU - Maier, Wolfgang
AU - Fuchs, Angela
AU - Petersen, Juliana J.
AU - Schäfer, Ingmar
AU - Gensichen, Jochen
AU - Riedel-Heller, Steffi G.
AU - Weyerer, Siegfried
AU - Bickel, Horst
AU - König, Hans-Helmut
AU - Wiese, Birgitt
AU - Schön, Gerhard
AU - Scherer, Martin
AU - van den Bussche, Hendrik
AU - Terluin, Berend
PY - 2018
Y1 - 2018
N2 - Purpose: Psychosomatic symptoms and mental health problems are highly prevalent in multimorbid elderly people challenging general practitioners to differentiate between normal stress and psychopathological conditions. The 4DSQ is a Dutch questionnaire developed to detect anxiety, depression, somatization, and distress in primary care. This study aims to analyze measurement equivalence between a German version and the original Dutch instrument. Methods: A Dutch and a German sample of multimorbid elderly people, matched by gender and age, were analyzed. Equivalence of scale structures was assessed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). To evaluate measurement equivalence across languages, differential item functioning (DIF) was analyzed using Mantel–Haenszel method and hybrid ordinal logistic regression analysis. Differential test functioning (DTF) was assessed using Rasch analysis. Results: A total of 185 German and 185 Dutch participants completed the questionnaire. The CFA confirmed one-factor models for all scales of both 4DSQ versions. Nine items in three scales were flagged with DIF. The anxiety scale showed to be free of DIF. DTF analysis revealed negligible scale impact of DIF. Conclusions: The German 4DSQ demonstrated measurement equivalence to the original Dutch instrument. Hence, it can be considered a valid questionnaire for the screening for mental health problems in primary care.
AB - Purpose: Psychosomatic symptoms and mental health problems are highly prevalent in multimorbid elderly people challenging general practitioners to differentiate between normal stress and psychopathological conditions. The 4DSQ is a Dutch questionnaire developed to detect anxiety, depression, somatization, and distress in primary care. This study aims to analyze measurement equivalence between a German version and the original Dutch instrument. Methods: A Dutch and a German sample of multimorbid elderly people, matched by gender and age, were analyzed. Equivalence of scale structures was assessed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). To evaluate measurement equivalence across languages, differential item functioning (DIF) was analyzed using Mantel–Haenszel method and hybrid ordinal logistic regression analysis. Differential test functioning (DTF) was assessed using Rasch analysis. Results: A total of 185 German and 185 Dutch participants completed the questionnaire. The CFA confirmed one-factor models for all scales of both 4DSQ versions. Nine items in three scales were flagged with DIF. The anxiety scale showed to be free of DIF. DTF analysis revealed negligible scale impact of DIF. Conclusions: The German 4DSQ demonstrated measurement equivalence to the original Dutch instrument. Hence, it can be considered a valid questionnaire for the screening for mental health problems in primary care.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85049061357&origin=inward
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29951867
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-018-1924-2
DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-018-1924-2
M3 - Article
C2 - 29951867
SN - 0962-9343
VL - 27
SP - 2691
EP - 2697
JO - Quality of life research
JF - Quality of life research
IS - 10
ER -