title: Screening for infertility-related stress at the time of initial infertility consultation: psychometric properties of a brief measure.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop and psychometrically test a brief self-report to assess the amount of infertility-related stress; to investigate how infertility-related stress was associated to socio-demographics, causes of infertility and emotional distress.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Infertility exerts a stress effect on both personal and interpersonal areas. Due to the burden of multiple assessments in fertility clinics, there is the need for very brief and easy to administer measures of the stressful impact of infertility on the intrapersonal and interpersonal life domains.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study had a psychometric, cross-sectional design.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between January - December 2013, a total of 597 Italian infertile patients (58·6% women), recruited at the time of initial infertility consultation, completed the Infertility-Related Stress Scale. A subsample of 200 participants (50% women) also completed self-reports of anxiety and depression. A subsample of 40 patients completed again the Infertility-Related Stress Scale at a 4-week follow-up visit.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Confirmatory factor analyses supported the proposed two-factor model of infertility stress affecting intrapersonal and interpersonal life domains. Both dimensions showed good reliability and were associated in expected ways with emotional distress. Patients with above-threshold levels of anxiety and depression showed higher infertility stress in both domains and particularly in the intrapersonal area. Infertility stress was significantly higher in women than in men in the intrapersonal domain.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Infertility-Related Stress Scale showed evidence of validity and reliability. This new, brief self-report can assist fertility clinic staff in identifying those patients who need support to overcome the stressful impact of infertility on intrapersonal and interpersonal domains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Giulia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Casu
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gremigni
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000523:psychology*; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000523:psychology*; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted / Q000523:psychology*; D057566:Self Report; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: anxiety; assisted reproductive technology; depression; fertility nurses; infertility stress; instrument development; interpersonal life; intrapersonal life; nursing