scholarly journals Psychometric Validation of a Questionnaire to Assess Perception and Knowledge About Exposure to Pesticides in Rural Schoolchildren of Maule, Chile

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Teresa Muñoz-Quezada ◽  
Boris Lucero ◽  
Benjamín Castillo ◽  
Asa Bradman ◽  
Liliana Zúñiga ◽  
...  

Exposure to pesticides during infancy is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. The assessment of knowledge and perception of pesticides exposure and risk among children has not been thoroughly studied. The aim of the study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of a questionnaire that measures the knowledge and perception of exposure to organophosphate pesticides among rural schoolchildren. The questionnaire was administered to 151 schoolchildren between 9 and 13years from four Chilean rural schools. An internal consistency analysis of the ordinal alpha coefficient and a polychoric factor analysis for categorical data were used. The results show that the ordinal alpha was 0.95. Polychoric matrices of rotated components show the 17 questions summarized pesticide knowledge in five factors extracted after promax rotation. This factorial model explains 56.3% of the variance. The questions were grouped as follows: knowledge about pesticides (Factor 1); knowledge of health effects related to pesticides exposure (Factor 2); pesticide exposure through the growing of fruits and vegetables (Factor 3); perception and action against pesticides exposure at school (Factor 4); and perception and action against pesticides exposure at home (Factor 5). The questionnaire provides a useful tool for examining pesticide exposure in agricultural regions, allowing younger community members to participate.

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-93
Author(s):  
Jeffrey M. Cucina ◽  
Nicholas L. Vasilopoulos ◽  
Arwen H. DeCostanza

Abstract. Varimax rotated principal component scores (VRPCS) have previously been offered as a possible solution to the non-orthogonality of scores for the Big Five factors. However, few researchers have examined the reliability and validity of VRPCS. To address this gap, we use a lab study and a field study to investigate whether using VRPCS increase orthogonality, reliability, and criterion-related validity. Compared to the traditional unit-weighting scoring method, the use of VRPCS enhanced the reliability and discriminant validity of the Big Five factors, although there was little improvement in criterion-related validity. Results are discussed in terms of the benefit of using VRPCS instead of traditional unit-weighted sum scores.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6733
Author(s):  
Ana Iglesias-Rodríguez ◽  
Azucena Hernández-Martín ◽  
Yolanda Martín-González ◽  
Patricia Herráez-Corredera

This article describes the process of design, validation, and implementation (N = 609) of a questionnaire drawn up ad hoc to assess the digital competence of compulsory education students (ages 11 to 13) in the area of communication. The test measures students’ knowledge, skills, and attitudes in the six competences that make up the area of communication, as established in the Framework for the Development and Knowledge of Digital Competence in Europe (DigComp): interacting through new technologies, sharing of information and content, online citizen participation, collaboration through digital technologies, netiquette, and digital identity management. The purposes of the study are to design and validate an instrument to assess compulsory education students’ digital competences in the area of communication based on their knowledge, skills, and attitudes and to analyse such instrument’s psychometric characteristics with special emphasis on its reliability and validity. The method used consisted of the implementation of various psychometric validation techniques and the analysis of the results based on statistical descriptions. Items show adequate discrimination and difficulty indices. Validity was guaranteed through expert judgement and factorial analysis of the test. The conclusion stresses the pressing need for education centres to provide students with adequate educational-communicative training.


2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 126-135
Author(s):  
Patrícia M. Pascoal ◽  
Maria-João Alvarez ◽  
Magda Sofia Roberto

Abstract Objective To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Beliefs About Appearance Scale (BAAS) in terms of its factorial structure and invariance, reliability, and validity when applied to adults from the community. Methods Participants consisted of 810 heterosexual Portuguese individuals in a committed relationship. As a confirmatory factor analysis did not support the original structure of the BAAS, an exploratory factor analysis was performed. Results A 12-item version was extracted comprising two dimensions: one personal and the other social. The factorial model depicting this bidimensional structure revealed an adequate fit following confirmatory factor analysis. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses indicated invariance across gender. Concurrent and discriminant validities and internal consistency were estimated and observed to be adequate. Conclusions This shorter measure of the BAAS can accurately assess body appearance beliefs and may be used in different research settings and contexts.


2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa L. O'Connor ◽  
Susan H. McFadden

This study employed qualitative construct mapping and factor analysis to construct a scale to measure attitudes toward dementia. Five family caregivers, five professionals, and five college students participated in structured interviews. Qualitative analysis of the interviews led to a 46-item scale, which was reduced to 20 items following principal axis factoring with two different samples: college students () and certified nursing assistant students (). Confirmatory factor analysis was then conducted with another sample of college students (). The final scale, titled the Dementia Attitudes Scale (DAS), essentially had a two-factor structure; the factors were labeled “dementia knowledge” and “social comfort.” Total-scale Cronbach's alphas ranged 0.83–0.85. Evidence for convergent validity was promising, as the DAS correlated significantly with scales that measured ageism and attitudes toward disabilities (range of correlations = 0.44–0.55; mean correlation ). These findings demonstrate the reliability and validity of the DAS, supporting its use as a research tool.


2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Kim-Wan Young ◽  
Petrus Y. N. Ng ◽  
Jia-Yan Pan ◽  
Daphne Cheng

Purpose: This study aims to translate and test the reliability and validity of the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness-Cantonese (ISMI-C). Methods: The original English version of ISMI is translated into the ISMI-C by going through forward and backward translation procedure. A cross-sectional research design is adopted that involved 295 participants randomly drawn from a population of Chinese consumers participated in different kinds of community-based mental health services. Results: Results show that the Cronbach’s α coefficient of the ISMI-C is .93. With regard to validity test, the ISMI-C shows significant and negative correlation with measures on self-esteem and quality of life. Also, an explorative factor analysis yields five factors that are consistent with previous research results. Discussion: This study shows that the ISMI-C is a reliable and valid measure. ISMI-C can facilitate the development of interventions in reducing self-stigma for people with mental illness across Chinese societies.


2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramón Morell-Gomis ◽  
José A. García del Castillo ◽  
Mónica Gázquez Pertusa ◽  
Álvaro García del Castillo-López

La familia es una organización social donde los comportamientos de cada miembro tienen efectos sobre los demás. De la revisión de la literatura científica se desprende que las variables familiares que influyen en el comportamiento de consumo de drogas son la comunicación familiar, los conflictos, el apoyo social y las normas de convivencia. El objetivo del presente estudio es la construcción de un instrumento que mida estas variables en población joven en una muestra de 165 alumnos de diferentes titulaciones universitarias de Alicante. En el análisis de los ítems se llevó a cabo un juicio de expertos, modelados estructurales, análisis de fiabilidad, y correlaciones con variables criterio y consumo de drogas. El resultado final es un cuestionario compuesto de 18 reactivos que se estructuran en cinco factores: Comunicación, Apoyo Social, Conflicto, Normas y Consecuencias, con unos índices de fiabilidad y validez adecuados.  Abstract The family is a social organization where each member’s behaviors have effects on others. From the scientific reviews have been found family variables that affect behaviors as drug use, they are family communication, conflict, social support and living rules. The target of this research is focused on the construction of a test to measure these variables. The sample consists of 165 students from different university degrees in Alicante. Analyzes of the items were done through expert opinion, structural models, reliability analysis, and correlations with criterion variables and drugs use. The final result is a test composed of 18 reactants that are structured into five factors: Communication, Social Support, Conflict, Rules and Consequences, providing indices of adequate reliability and validity.


2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-42
Author(s):  
Jenny E. Bashiruddin ◽  
Widayat Alviandi ◽  
Alvin Reinaldo ◽  
Eka D. Safitri ◽  
Yupitri Pitoyo ◽  
...  

Background: To translate and assess the validity and reliability of the Indonesian version of Tinnitus Handycap Inventory (THI) as an psychometric instrument for evaluating the quality of life in tinnitus patients. This instrument will support the clinicians to determine the appropriate tinnitus management for them.Methods: A cross-sectional psychometric validation study was performed to assess the internal consistency, reliability and validity of the Indonesian version of THI in 50 subjective tinnitus patients at ENT outpatient clinic of Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital between May-August 2010. 25 question items of original THI were translated, back-translated and validated using the transcultural validation by WHO.Results: The validity test demonstrated a significant correlation in the emotional and the catastrophic scale whilst there was no significant correlation in the functional scale for item F2 and particularly for item F15. Nevertheless, the validity test on the functional scale showed a good result. This study also showed high internal consistency and reliability for the total scale (Cronbach-α = 0.91)Conclusion: The evaluation result indicated that the reliability of adapted Indonesian version of the THI in our study is relatively high and could be applied in clinical examination or further otolaryngology study by both specialists and general physicians.


2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (OCE2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Rebouillat ◽  
Rodolphe Vidal ◽  
Jean-Pierre Cravedi ◽  
Bruno Taupier-Letage ◽  
Laurent Debrauwer ◽  
...  

AbstractPesticides are used in large quantities in current agriculture all over Europe. Some pesticides are suspected of having negative effects on human health. While the risk associated with occupational exposure is getting well-documented, evidence of dietary exposure to these molecules in the general population is lacking. The aim of this study is to describe dietary exposure to pesticides among NutriNet-Santé cohort participants’.NutriNet-Santé is a web-based cohort of French middle-aged adults launched in 2009. BioNutriNet is an ancillary study launched in 2014, aiming to measure organic and conventional food consumption and evaluate different dimensions of diet sustainability. Dietary intake of organic and conventional foods was assessed using a 264 items self-administered semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Exposure to 25 commonly used pesticides was evaluated using contamination data from CVUA Stuttgart accounting for farming system. Dietary pesticide exposure profiles were identified using Non-Negative Matrix factorization (NMF), specially adapted for non-negative data with excess zeros. The NMF scores were then introduced in a hierarchical clustering process. Identified clusters were described in terms of sociodemographics, dietary patterns and exposure to pesticides.A total of 34,442 participants were selected. Four clusters were identified. All clusters seemed to be exposed to the same molecules, with gradual intensity. The first cluster was characterized by the lowest energy-intake, highest organic food consumption (26.9%) and lowest dietary pesticide exposure; participants had highest consumption levels of organic food groups, including fruits and vegetables. Proportion of male participants and of rural residents was higher than in other groups. Clusters 2 and 3 were characterized by intermediate energy intake, and low organic food consumption. High conventional fruits and vegetables intake and moderate pesticide exposure were observed in cluster 2, composed of a lower smokers’ proportion. Cluster 3 individuals were less exposed to pesticides than clusters 2 and 4, except for Spinosad and Pyrethrins. Cluster 4 was characterized by the highest energy intake, lowest organic food consumption (12.2%), and highest pesticide exposure ; high consumption levels of conventional fruits, vegetables and a higher proportion of vegetarians were observed. This cluster was composed of 85.6% female participants, mainly retired (47.5%), mostly living in cities of 200 000 inhabitants and more (48.2%), and physically active.Dietary pesticide exposures seem to vary across the clusters and depending on the proportion of organic food in the diet. High consumers of conventional fruits and vegetables consumers seem to be more exposed to our selection of pesticides.


2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (No. 9) ◽  
pp. 435-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Arumugam ◽  
M.A. Fatimah ◽  
E.F.C. Eddie FC Chiew ◽  
M. Zainalabidin

The paper examines the factors that lead farmers to participate in c the contract farming in the Peninsular Malaysia. The primary data was collected through a survey using a questionnaire on the total of two hundred and eight farmers from various states in Malaysia. The study utilizes the stratified sampling method. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. The survey identified forty-one contract farmers. Factor analysis was carried out to identify the factors that lead farmers to participate in the contract farming. Based on the analysis, five factors were identified as the reasons for contracting, namely, market stability, and access to marketing information and technology, transfer of technology to improve farming practices, access to inputs and indirect benefit. Contract farming or contract arrangements can be a valuable source of an additional income and knowledge that can be employed to enhance the productivity of the entire farming enterprise.


1998 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 187-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kay Wilson ◽  
Eleonora Gullone ◽  
Simon Moss

This study investigated the psychometric properties of the revised Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children (PANAS-C; Joiner, Catanzaro & Laurent, 1996) in 228 nonclinical children and adolescents aged between 8 and 15 years. The results revealed that the PANAS-C possesses high internal consistency and encouraging convergent validity, as demonstrated by correlations with the theoretically related constructs of Neuroticism and Extraversion. Construct validity was supported through confirmatory factor analysis, which revealed a two dimensional structure comprising Negative and Positive Affect. Divergent validity was confirmed by the nonsignificant correlation between positive and negative affect. Thus, the PANAS-C was demonstrated to have good reliability and validity, subject to minor changes in item content.


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