title: The life closure scale: additional psychometric testing of a tool to measure psychological adaptation in death and dying.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to conduct additional psychometric testing on an instrument designed to measure psychological adaptation in end-of-life populations across a wide spectrum of terminal illnesses. A sample of 20 participants completed initial testing of the Life Closure Scale (LCS); however, its usefulness was limited by the small sample size. A larger sample of 113 home hospice individuals who met established criteria and who gave informed consent completed the 27-item LCS for additional psychometric testing. Cronbach's alphas and correlation coefficients were computed, and factor analysis was conducted to establish internal consistency reliability, theoretical clarity, and criterion-related validity. The number of scale items was reduced to 20, with a total alpha of.87. Cronbach's alphas for the two subscales were.80 (self-reconciled) and.82 (self-restructuring). Item-total correlations for the subscales ranged from a low of.37 to a high of.68, with confirmatory factor analysis yielding two loadings. These findings lend credence to the usefulness of the LCS in measuring psychological adaptation in dying persons.
authors.affiliation: University of Washington, Tacoma, WA 98402-3100, USA.
authors.forename: Marjorie C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Dobratz
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001293:Attitude to Death; D005260:Female; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006738:Hospices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011581:Psychological Tests / Q000592:standards*; D011594:Psychometrics; D011788:Quality of Life; D019452:Terminally Ill / Q000523:psychology*