title: Reliability and validity of two HIV/AIDS-specific quality of life instruments adapted for use in HIV-positive Zimbabweans.
abstract: We sought to assess the reliability and construct validity of the HIV/AIDS-Targeted Quality of Life instrument (HAT-QoL) and the Medical Outcomes Study HIV Health Survey (MOS-HIV) adapted for use in Shona-speaking rural Zimbabwe. HAT-QoL and MOS-HIV were translated and culturally adapted into Shona, and administered to a convenience-sample of 400 patients with HIV-related opportunistic infections. HIV disease severity and bereavement history were assessed. Factor analysis of the HAT-QoL items produced seven factors that were nearly identical to the factor structure reported for an American sample that was the basis for the current HAT-QoL scales. Factor analysis of the MOS-HIV scales resulted in a single factor, not the expected two-factor structure (physical and mental). Convergent and discriminant validity assessments confirmed, in general, that similar Shona HAT-QoL and MOS-HIV dimensions were correlated and dissimilar ones not correlated. Construct validity assessments indicated that, on the whole, most Shona HAT-QoL and MOS-HIV dimensions were capturing anticipated subgroup differences. The exceptions were the Shona MOS-HIV dimensions of general health perceptions, cognitive function, and the quality of life (QoL) item. The reliability and validity of most Shona-adapted HAT-QoL and MOS-HIV dimensions suggest that both instruments are likely useful in measuring the QoL of rural, Shona-speaking populations in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Zambia, and Botswana.
authors.affiliation: HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies at New York State Psychiatric Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA. tnt2109@columbia.edu
authors.forename: Tonya N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Curtis
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dolezal
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tross
authors.forename: William C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Holmes
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000523:psychology*; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012423:Rural Health; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014175:Translating; D055815:Young Adult; D015030:Zimbabwe