title: Development and validation of the postpartum sleep quality scale.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Postpartum sleep disorders are a significant problem for postnatal women. Although factors predisposing postnatal women to sleep disorders have been identified, few sleep quality assessment instruments adequately address these factors.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to develop a Postpartum Sleep Quality Scale (PSQS) and test its psychometric properties.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixteen PSQS items were generated from clinical practice, a literature review, and expert recommendations. Two hundred two postpartum women were recruited from a medical center and an obstetric clinic in southern Taiwan in 2010-2011 to assess the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, construct validity, and convergent validity of the developed PSQS.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Item analysis removed two of the initial PSQS items. The resultant 14-item PSQS showed good internal consistency (α = .81) and acceptable 5-day test-retest reliability (r = .81). Construct validity was confirmed using exploratory factor analysis, which extracted and defined "Infant night care-related daytime dysfunction" and "Physical symptoms-related sleep inefficiency" as the two main categories of postpartum sleep quality. These two factors explained 44.49% of total variance, with factor loadings between .43 and .76. Significant correlation (r = .67) with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index showed convergent validity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The 14-item PSQS is a reliable, valid, and useful scale for measuring postpartum sleep quality and examining intervention protocols in Taiwanese postpartum women with sleep disturbance.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, Fooyin University of Technology.
authors.forename: Chiu-Ling
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Chen-Hsiang
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Chung-Hey
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004509:Education, Nursing, Continuing; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009551:Night Care / Q000523:psychology*; D049590:Postpartum Period / Q000523:psychology*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000592:standards*; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013624:Taiwan