[German adaptation of the "Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale" for the assessment of falls-related self-efficacy].
The present study investigates the psychometric properties and the factorial structure of the German adaptation of the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale (Powell & Myers, 1995) for the evaluation of falls-related self-efficacy in community-dwelling older adults. The German adaptation of the ABC using a forward-backward procedure was administered to 113 older adults (age 68.9+/-8.5 years). The following internationally accepted instruments were used for validation: The Short Form Health Survey SF 36, the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), the Trail Making Test and the Letter Number Sequencing Test, and motor tests (balance, strength, mobility). The internal consistency (0.91-0.95) as well as the test-retest reliability of the subscales was excellent (0.94-0.98). The correlation coefficients with the validation instruments ranged between 0.33 and 0.58. Significant differences in the ABC-D scores were found in older adults with and without falls. Older adults with a recent fall history scored lower on the ABC-D than older adults without a recent fall history. To conclude, the German version of the ABC has properties analogous to the original English version and is apparently useful in assessing falls-related self-efficacy.
Schott
Nadja
N
Institute for Sport Sciences, Sport Psychology, Liverpool Hope University, Hope Park, Liverpool, UK. schottn@hope-ac.uk
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000145:classification*; D000368:Aged; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D009460:Neurologic Examination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004856:Postural Balance; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020377:Self Efficacy; D014175:Translating