title: Psychometric properties of the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy--Spiritual Well-being (FACIT-Sp) in an Arabic-speaking, predominantly Muslim population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study determined the psychometric properties of the Arabic Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-being (FACIT-Sp) Version 4 and explored associations between its three factors (Peace, Meaning, and Faith) and health-related quality of life (HrQoL) among Arab patients with cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 205 Arabic-speaking, study-eligible cancer patients who were in treatment at the King Hussein Cancer Center, Amman, Jordan, completed the FACIT-Sp scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficients suggest that the Arabic FACIT-Sp is reliable and that moderate to strong correlations among subscales suggest validity. Correlation analyses showed that the 12-item Spiritual Well-being scale was associated with Social (r = 0.45, p = 0.01) and Functional Well-being (r = 0.48, p = 0.01). Hierarchical multiple regressions revealed that the Peace factor added 7.5% and the Meaning factor 3.8% to the prediction of HrQoL (p < 0.001). Faith did not significantly contribute to the unique prediction of HrQoL. Correlation analyses revealed that Peace was most prominently associated with the HrQoL subscale of Functional Well-being (r = 0.53, p = 0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This first study of Arabic-speaking, predominantly Muslim Jordanian cancer patients using the FACIT-Sp indicates that it is a psychometrically sound instrument for detailed assessment of the spiritual well-being of Arabic-speaking cancer patients. The three-factor model appears to allow for discrimination among factors that are most highly associated with different aspects of HrQoL.
authors.affiliation: Yale University, School of Nursing, New Haven, CT 06107-0740, USA. mark.lazenby@yale.edu
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lazenby
authors.forename: Jamal
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Khatib
authors.forename: Feda'
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Al-Khair
authors.forename: Majdoleen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Neamat
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018912:Arabs / Q000523:psychology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007514:Islam; D007597:Jordan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D029181:Spirituality; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult