title: Validating the Farsi version of the Pregnancy Worries and Stress Questionnaire (PWSQ): An exploratory factor analysis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Biological, environmental, inter- and intrapersonal changes during the antenatal period can result in anxiety and stress in pregnant women. It is pivotal to identify potential stressors and prevent their foetal and maternal consequences. The present study was conducted to validate and examine the factor structure of the Farsi version of the Pregnancy Worries and Stress Questionnaire (PWSQ).
  
  
  METHODS
  In 2015, 502 Iranian healthy pregnant women, referred to selected hospitals in Tehran for prenatal care at 8-39 weeks of pregnancy, were recruited through a randomized cluster sampling. The PWSQ was translated into Farsi, and its validity and reliability were examined using exploratory factor analysis by SPSS version 21.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The content validity of items on the PWSQ was between 0.63-1. The content validity index for relevance, clarity and simplicity were 0.92, 0.98, and 0.98, respectively, with a mean of 0.94. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy was 0.863. Test-retest reliability showed high internal consistency (α=0.89; p<0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The psychometric evaluation and exploratory factor analysis showed that the translated questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool to identify stress in Iranian pregnant women. Application of the questionnaire can facilitate the diagnosis of stress in pregnant women and assist health care providers in providing timely support and minimizing negative outcomes of stress and anxiety in pregnant women and their infants.
authors.affiliation: M.Sc. of Midwifery, Department of Midwifery and Reproductive Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Navidpour
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. of Social Determinants of Health, Assistant Professor, Department of Midwifery and Reproductive Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahrokh
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dolatian
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. Candidate, Faculty of Health, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shishehgar
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. in Public Health, Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Zanjan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Zanjan, Iran.
authors.forename: Farideh
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yaghmaei
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. in Biostatistics, Department of Biostatistics, School of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hamid Alavi
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Majd
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. in Psychiatrics, Department of Psychology, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Seyed Saeed
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Hashemi
keywords: Exploratory examination; Factor analysis; Pregnancy; Stress; Worry; anxiety