'Potency': the validation of information from a self-administered questionnaire using objective measurements of night-time erections and test-retest reliability

ObjectiveThe measurement of excess body hair is not straightforward. As the modified Ferriman–Gallwey (mFG) score is unsuitable for self-assessment and requires specialist training, a short, self-administered questionnaire to identify hirsutism was constructed and validated for large-scale application, particularly targeting population-based studies.DesignA validation study was conducted to assess a new hirsutism questionnaire.MethodsA total of 90 women aged 35–72 years who were enrolled in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) were evaluated. A self-administered instrument containing four questions was designed to evaluate five body areas: upper lip, chin, chest, lower abdomen, and thighs with respect to the current distribution of body hair and that before 35 years of age. A score of 0–4 was attributed to each region based on drawings provided in the instrument. Test–retest reliability was evaluated by reformulating the initial questions. An independent medical examination was conducted to apply the gold standard, the mFG score.ResultsThe area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.93 (95% CI: 0.87–0.99). A cut-off score of 5 showed the best balance between sensitivity (85%) and specificity (90%), with 88.9% accuracy. Spearman's correlation between current and past body hair score was calculated at 0.82 (P=0.000), and showed a test–retest reliability of 0.49, with a trend toward similar answers regarding changes in the quantity of body hair over time, irrespective of how the questions were asked (P=0.000).ConclusionThe accuracy and internal consistency of this self-administered questionnaire for the identification of hirsutism were good. Therefore, this questionnaire represents a useful tool for self-assessment of hirsutism in population-based studies.

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Self-Administered Medication-Risk Questionnaire in an Elderly Population

Annals of Pharmacotherapy ◽

10.1345/aph.1c305 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 37 (7-8) ◽

pp. 982-987 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

Hedva Barenholtz Levy

Keyword(s):

Internal Consistency ◽

Prescription Drugs ◽

Adult Population ◽

Drug Regimen ◽

Rater Reliability ◽

Retest Reliability ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Severity Scores ◽

Test Retest Reliability ◽

Self Administered Questionnaire

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate and validate a 10-item self-administered questionnaire for use by elderly patients to identify who is at increased risk of potentially experiencing a medication-related problem (MRP). METHODS: Forty participants aged ≥60 years who took ≥2 prescription drugs regularly completed the questionnaire. Data collection was based on patient interviews, review of pharmacy or medical records, and drug regimen reviews (DRRs). Outcome measures included feasibility, inter-rater reliability, test–retest reliability, internal consistency, and validity of the questionnaire. DRR severity scores were determined for each participant based on published guidelines for appropriate use. RESULTS: The questionnaire was easily administered to this group of older adults. Overall inter-rater reliability was high (r = 0.847). Nine of 10 individual questions matched well between the investigator and participants (κ 0.4–0.6 for 3 questions; >0.6 for 6 questions). Test–retest reliability was significant for all 10 questions (κ > 0.6). Internal consistency was acceptable (a = 0.69). DRR severity scores were correlated with questionnaire responses to determine validity. The number of yes answers correlated significantly with higher DRR severity scores (p < 0.001). Furthermore, 5 individual questions significantly correlated with DRR severity scores. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that a self-administered questionnaire can be used in an older adult population to identify patients potentially at increased risk of MRPs. Clinicians in ambulatory care settings with similar patient populations can use a modified form of the questionnaire to screen for patients who should receive a medication review.

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Measuring “Language Access Profiles” in Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children With the DHH Language Exposure Assessment Tool

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/2020_jslhr-20-00439 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-25

Author(s):

Matthew L. Hall ◽

Stephanie De Anda

Keyword(s):

Cluster Analysis ◽

Exposure Assessment ◽

Hard Of Hearing ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Communication Mode ◽

Developmental Potential ◽

Language Access ◽

Retest Reliability ◽

Language Exposure ◽

Test Retest Reliability

Purpose The purposes of this study were (a) to introduce “language access profiles” as a viable alternative construct to “communication mode” for describing experience with language input during early childhood for deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children; (b) to describe the development of a new tool for measuring DHH children's language access profiles during infancy and toddlerhood; and (c) to evaluate the novelty, reliability, and validity of this tool. Method We adapted an existing retrospective parent report measure of early language experience (the Language Exposure Assessment Tool) to make it suitable for use with DHH populations. We administered the adapted instrument (DHH Language Exposure Assessment Tool [D-LEAT]) to the caregivers of 105 DHH children aged 12 years and younger. To measure convergent validity, we also administered another novel instrument: the Language Access Profile Tool. To measure test–retest reliability, half of the participants were interviewed again after 1 month. We identified groups of children with similar language access profiles by using hierarchical cluster analysis. Results The D-LEAT revealed DHH children's diverse experiences with access to language during infancy and toddlerhood. Cluster analysis groupings were markedly different from those derived from more traditional grouping rules (e.g., communication modes). Test–retest reliability was good, especially for the same-interviewer condition. Content, convergent, and face validity were strong. Conclusions To optimize DHH children's developmental potential, stakeholders who work at the individual and population levels would benefit from replacing communication mode with language access profiles. The D-LEAT is the first tool that aims to measure this novel construct. Despite limitations that future work aims to address, the present results demonstrate that the D-LEAT represents progress over the status quo.

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Visual-Neural Correlate of Speechreading Ability in Normal-Hearing Adults

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/jshr.2504.521 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 25 (4) ◽

pp. 521-527 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

David C. Shepherd

Keyword(s):

Normal Hearing ◽

Wave Form ◽

Firing Time ◽

Neural Firing ◽

Neural Correlate ◽

Retest Reliability ◽

Repeated Word ◽

Negative Peak ◽

The Stability ◽

Test Retest Reliability

In 1977, Shepherd and colleagues reported significant correlations (–.90, –.91) between speechreading scores and the latency of a selected negative peak (VN 130 measure) on the averaged visual electroencephalic wave form. The primary purpose of this current study was to examine the stability, or repeatability, of this relation between these cognitive and neurophysiologic measures over a period of several months and thus support its test-retest reliability. Repeated speechreading word and sentence scores were gathered during three test-retest sessions from each of 20 normal-hearing adults. An average of 56 days occurred from the end of one to the beginning of another speechreading sessions. During each of four other test-retest sessions, averaged visual electroencephalic responses (AVER s ) were evoked from each subject. An average of 49 clays intervened between AVER sessions. Product-moment correlations computed among repeated word scores and VN l30 measures ranged from –.61 to –.89. Based on these findings, it was concluded that the VN l30 measure of visual neural firing time is a reliable correlate of speech-reading in normal-hearing adults.

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Test-Retest Reliability of a Self-Report Questionnaire for DSM-IV and ICD-10 Personality Disorders

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027//1015-5759.16.1.53 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 53-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Hans Ottosson ◽

Martin Grann ◽

Gunnar Kullgren

Keyword(s):

Personality Disorder ◽

Anxiety Disorders ◽

Personality Disorders ◽

Clinical Sample ◽

Self Report ◽

Anxiety State ◽

Short Term ◽

Retest Reliability ◽

Axis I ◽

Test Retest Reliability

Summary: Short-term stability or test-retest reliability of self-reported personality traits is likely to be biased if the respondent is affected by a depressive or anxiety state. However, in some studies, DSM-oriented self-reported instruments have proved to be reasonably stable in the short term, regardless of co-occurring depressive or anxiety disorders. In the present study, we examined the short-term test-retest reliability of a new self-report questionnaire for personality disorder diagnosis (DIP-Q) on a clinical sample of 30 individuals, having either a depressive, an anxiety, or no axis-I disorder. Test-retest scorings from subjects with depressive disorders were mostly unstable, with a significant change in fulfilled criteria between entry and retest for three out of ten personality disorders: borderline, avoidant and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. Scorings from subjects with anxiety disorders were unstable only for cluster C and dependent personality disorder items. In the absence of co-morbid depressive or anxiety disorders, mean dimensional scores of DIP-Q showed no significant differences between entry and retest. Overall, the effect from state on trait scorings was moderate, and it is concluded that test-retest reliability for DIP-Q is acceptable.

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