title: Epidemiological evaluation of short-form versions of the Child Perception Questionnaire.
abstract: The objective of the study was to compare the performance of four short-form versions of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ(11-14)) with that of the long-form version in a random population sample of 12- and 13-yr-old children from New Zealand in order to determine which short-form version was the most valid. Children (n = 430, participation rate 74.1%) completed the 37-item CPQ(11-14). Two separate 8- and 16-item short-form versions were previously developed using (a) item impact and (b) regression methods. The four different short-form scales were compared with the full CPQ(11-14) on their construct validity. The children were examined for malocclusion (using the Dental Aesthetic Index) and for dental caries by a single examiner (L.F.P.). All short-form versions revealed substantial variability in overall oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.73 (Regression Short Form [RSF]-8) to 0.86 (RSF-16). For all short-form versions, mean scores were positively associated with self-rated oral health and overall wellbeing; associations with the latter were stronger. All short-form versions detected OHRQoL gradients, as hypothesized, across ascending categories of caries and malocclusion. These findings suggest that the short-form versions of the CPQ(11-14) all show acceptable properties, but that the 16-item versions perform better (and are essentially equivalent); however, the stronger theoretical underpinning of the item-impact-derived 16-item short-form version suggests that it shows the most promise.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Rehabilitation, School of Dentistry, University of Otago, Otago, New Zealand. lyndie.fosterpage@otago.ac.nz
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Foster Page
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Thomson
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jokovic
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Locker
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000523:psychology*; D003753:Dental Health Surveys; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008310:Malocclusion / Q000523:psychology*; D009520:New Zealand; D009909:Oral Health; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*