title: Reliability and construct validity of three health-related self-report scales in HIV-positive adults in rural Rwanda.
abstract: Depression, low health-related quality of life, and low perceived social support have been shown to predict poor health outcomes, including HIV-related outcomes. Mental health morbidity and HIV are important public health concerns in Rwanda, where approximately half of the current population is estimated to have survived the genocide and 3% is living with HIV. We examined the reliability and construct validity of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-15 (HSCL-15), the Medical Outcomes Study HIV Health Survey (MOS-HIV), and the Duke/UNC Functional Social Support Questionnaire (DUFSSQ), which were used to assess depression, health-related quality of life, and perceived social support, respectively, among HIV-infected adults in rural Rwanda. We also studied whether scale reliability differed by gender, literacy status, or antiretroviral therapy (ART) delivery strategy. The Kinyarwanda versions of the HSCL-15, MOS-HIV, and DUFSSQ performed well in the study population. Reliability was favorable (Cronbach's alpha coefficients ≥0.75 or above) for the scales overall and across subgroups of gender, literacy, and mode of ART delivery. The scales also demonstrated good convergent, discriminant, and known-group validity.
authors.affiliation: Partners In Health/Inshuti Mu Buzima, Rwinkwavu, Rwanda. hepino@pih.org
authors.forename: Henry M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Epino
authors.forename: Michael L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Rich
authors.forename: Felix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kaigamba
authors.forename: Massudi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hakizamungu
authors.forename: Adrienne R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Socci
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bagiruwigize
authors.forename: Molly F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Franke
mesh_terms: D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology*; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012424:Rural Population; D012432:Rwanda; D057566:Self Report; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*
chemical_list: D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents