title: Internal consistency and construct validity assessment of a revised Facts on Aging Quiz for Flemish nursing students: an exploratory study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Since more people are reaching older and older ages, healthcare systems are becoming in need of more and more knowledgeable nurses to meet the specific health care needs of older persons. Several instruments exist to measure and evaluate students' knowledge of older persons, ageing, and gerontological care; however, unequivocal evidence on their use and psychometric properties is scarce. The aim of the study was to validate a revised version of Palmore's Facts on Aging Quiz (FAQ).
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional, exploratory study was conducted. Palmore's FAQ version 1 and Facts on Aging Mental Health Quiz were used as bases for the development of a revised FAQ instrument. Three researchers translated these instruments into Dutch. A panel of nine experts in geriatric research and gerontological care evaluated the translation and the face and content validity of the instrument. We used a cross-sectional, exploratory design to assess its internal consistency and construct validity. Cronbach's alpha coefficients, exploratory factor analysis, and the known-groups technique were used for these analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Based on the experts' consensus, a revised version of the FAQ, consisting of 36 items, was produced. Exploratory factor analysis did not reveal underlying constructs suggesting that the revised version encloses a more general concept of knowledge (e.g. about older persons, aging, gerontological care). Using the known-groups technique, we validated the instrument, showing that it discriminates between the knowledge of first- and third-year nursing students. The overall Cronbach's coefficient of 0.723 was acceptable and changed minimally (from 0.708 to 0.724) when items were removed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that the revised version of the FAQ can be used to properly evaluate nursing students' knowledge about older persons and gerontological care, as reasonable reliability and validity were established for this revised version of the FAQ.
authors.forename: Elisa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Van der Elst
authors.forename: Mieke
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Deschodt
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Welsch
authors.forename: Koen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Milisen
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health Services and Nursing Research, Department of Public Health & Primary Care, KU Leuven, Kapucijnenvoer 35/4, 3000 Leuven, Belgium. bernadette.dierckxdecasterle@med.kuleuven.be.
authors.forename: Bernadette
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dierckx de Casterlé
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001530:Belgium; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate / Q000592:standards*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005851:Geriatric Nursing / Q000193:education*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000193:education*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013338:Students, Nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires