VALIDATION OF THE ALTERNATIVE BRAZILIAN VERSION OF THE MONTREAL COGNITIVE ASSESSMENT (MOCA-BR): PILOT STUDY

Background: The current version of the Brazilian Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-BR) did not have a reliable cross-cultural adaptation to Brazil-ian Portuguese. In previous stages of this study, the Alternative Version of the MoCA-BR was developed, with changes in the sections: Memory and Delayed Recall, Language and Naming. Objectives: to verify the influence of crosscultural adaptation on the performance of cognitive tools, and the accuracy of the Alternative Version of the MoCA-BR. Methods: a pilot, prospective, longitudinal and analytical study. Both versions of the test were applied in a randomized and cognitively healthy population, between 18 and 60 years, within a medium interval of 54,56 days between the questionnaires. Results: out of 104 participants, 70 were included (64.3% female, 40.2 years). The alternative version obtained superior performances in the naming domain (p < 0.001), and in the adapted sentence in the language domain (p = 0.003). There was no significant difference in the delayed recall domain. The alternative version showed good internal consistency, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.75. The cutoff point suggested by the study is 27 points, with sensitivity and specificity of 91.3% and 79.2%, respectively. Conclusions: Cultural factors affect the accuracy of cognitive tests, and adaptation is essential for their use in different countries.

Cross-cultural adaptation of the English version of the Senior Fitness Test to Spanish

<p>Background. The physical condition of the elderly is related<br />to health and functional independence. One specific and<br />scientifically valid instrument measuring this parameter is the<br />Senior Fitness Test, of which the original version is in English.</p><p>Objective. To identify the face validity of the test for use<br />in Spanish language based on the cultural adaptation of the<br />English version.</p><p><br />Materials and methods. Descriptive study, for which crosscultural adaptation to Spanish was performed. This involved translation, evaluation of conceptual equivalence by three bilingual experts, synthesis of observations, calculation of values for the index of agreement and applicability.</p><p><br />Results. The overall agreement rate is 0.9485. No disagreements arose between the judges for any of the items, and intelligibility is of 85.2%, according to subjects of different ages and levels of schooling.</p><p><br />Conclusions. A version of the Senior Fitness Test adapted to<br />Spanish was obtained. The test is backed up by face validity<br />and comprehensibility, and conserves semantic, idiomatic, and<br />conceptual equivalence to the original version.</p><p> </p>

Validating the Polish Adaptation of the 11-Item De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale

The aim of this study was to translate into Polish and establish the psychometric properties of the 11-item De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale (DJGLS). The translation process followed the recent guidelines for the crosscultural adaptation of questionnaires and was tested through analysis of differential item functioning (DIF) by the use of the Poly-SIBTEST method and bilingual groups. The essential unidimensionality was checked by bifactor analysis. Reliability was assessed by internal consistency and homogeneity analysis, and external construct validity by correlation with several external scales. The research indicated no differences in item performance between the final Polish and English versions, and confirmed the earlier findings indicating that the DJGLS measures two dimensions of loneliness (social and emotional) which generalize into a higher-order factor of a general sense of loneliness (bifactor structure). Reliability (α = .89) and homogeneity (H = .47) proved to be high. Research showed that the instrument has a satisfactory validity criterion: Correlation with the UCLA Loneliness Scale r = .82; with Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale r = –.56; and with the Beck Depression Inventory r = .46 (all p < .01). The Polish adaptation of the DJGLS thus presents a bifactor structure, with good levels of internal consistency, homogeneity, and construct validity.