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Culturally competent teachers are in high demand as the English learner (EL), culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) student population increases in the U.S. However, the teaching force continues to be predominantly female, White, and monolingual, inexperienced in dealing with diverse populations. Typically, teacher preparation to teach ELs and CLD students consist mainly of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses that teach pre-service teachers to become linguistically competent and earn their ESOL endorsement certifications but do not ensure that they will be prepared to be culturally competent and responsive in their practices. In this study, an instrument was designed in Qualtrics to measure pre-service teachers' perceptions of cultural competence in teaching CLD students. On the one hand, the results indicated pre-service teachers' high disposition, openness, and comfort levels when learning about different cultures and languages and their students' cultural and linguistic backgrounds. On the other hand, the respondents acknowledged having limited training to prepare them to teach and interact with diverse student populations and having limited experiences interacting with them. The study reinforces the importance of providing pre-service teachers with ongoing opportunities during their teacher preparation programs to develop cultural competence and culturally responsive teaching skills before graduating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The organizational culture (shared beliefs, perceptions, and values) of teams informs their behaviours and practices. Little is known about organizational culture for resuscitation teams. Our objective was to develop a reliable and valid resuscitation-specific organizational culture instrument (ROCI) with the goal of improving team performance. Methods: Using Neonatal Resuscitation Program principles, literature review, and discussion of existing culture measures with experts, we identified organizational culture components for resuscitation and adapted existing measures to resuscitation. We developed a ROCI with five subscales (role clarity, shared-mental models, closed-loop communication, team adaptability, and psychological safety) and administered it to neonatal resuscitation team members across a hospital network. Survey psychometric assessment included reliability analyses (Cronbach’s α, Pearson correlation coefficients) and validity testing (confirmatory factor analysis [CFA] and regression models examining the association of culture with implementation outcomes: climate and perceived success). Results: Across 11 hospitals there were 318 complete responses (41 % response rate). Of the 22-items tested, 18 were retained after iterative psychometric assessment. The ROCI had excellent overall reliability (Cronbach’s α = 0.994) and very good subscale reliability (Cronbach’s α = 0.789–0.867). The CFA goodness-of-fit statistics confirmed five constructs (subscales). At the individual-level, the ROCI and all subscales were associated with both implementation outcomes. At the hospital-level, the ROCI overall and three subscales were associated with perceived success. Conclusion: The ROCI is a reliable and valid measure of the organizational culture of resuscitation teams. Future ROCI assessments may provide a foundation to inform culture change initiatives to improve resuscitation quality and outcomes across populations and contexts.

User-centric design within organizations is crucial for developing information technology that offers optimal usability and user experience. Personas are a central user-centered design technique that puts people before technology and helps decision makers understand the needs and wants of the end-user segments of their products, systems, and services. However, it is not clear how ready organizations are to adopt persona thinking. To address these concerns, we develop and validate the Persona Readiness Scale (PRS), a survey instrument to measure organizational readiness for personas. After a 12-person qualitative pilot study, the PRS was administered to 372 professionals across different industries to examine its reliability and validity, including 125 for exploratory factor analysis and 247 for confirmatory factor analysis. The confirmatory factor analysis indicated a good fit with five dimensions: Culture readiness, Knowledge readiness, Data and systems readiness, Capability readiness, and Goal readiness. Higher persona readiness is positively associated with the respondents' evaluations of successful persona projects. Organizations can apply the resulting 18-item scale to identify areas of improvement before initiating costly persona projects towards the overarching goal of user-centric product development. Located at the cross-section of information systems and human–computer interaction, our research provides a valuable instrument for organizations wanting to leverage personas towards more user-centric and empathetic decision making about users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Pain is highly prevalent in older adults and often contextualized by multiple clinical conditions (pain comorbidities). Pain comorbidities increase with age and this makes clinical decisions more complex. To address gaps in clinical training and geriatric pain management, we established the Pain in Aging --Educational Assessment of Need (PAEAN) project to appraise the impacts of medical and mental health conditions on clinical decision-making regarding older adults with pain. We here report development and pilot testing of the PAEAN survey instrument to assess clinician perspectives. Methods: Mixed-methods approaches were used. Scoping review methodology was applied to appraise both research literature and selected Medicare-based data. A geographically and professionally diverse interprofessional advisory panel of experts in pain research, medical education, and geriatrics was formed to advise development of the list of pain comorbidities potentially impacting healthcare professional clinical decision-making. A survey instrument was developed, and pilot tested by diverse licensed healthcare practitioners from 2 institutions. Respondents were asked to rate agreement regarding clinical decision-making impact using a 5-point Likert scale. Items were scored for percent agreement. Results: Scoping reviews indicated that pain conditions and comorbidities are prevalent in older adults but not universally recognized. We found no research literature directly guiding pain educators in designing pain education modules that mirror older adult clinical complexity. The interprofessional advisory panel identified 26 common clinical conditions for inclusion in the pilot PAEAN instrument. Conditions fell into three main categories: "major medical", i.e., cardio-vascular-pulmonary; metabolic; and neuropsychiatric/age-related. The instrument was pilot tested by surveying clinically active healthcare providers, e.g., physicians, nurse practitioners, who all responded completely. Median survey completion time was less than 3 min. Conclusion: This study, developing and pilot testing our Pain in Aging-Educational Assessment of Need" (PAEAN) instrument, suggests that 1) many clinical conditions impact pain clinical decision-making, and 2) surveying healthcare practitioners about the impact of pain comorbidities on clinical decision-making for older adults is highly feasible. Given the challenges intrinsic to safe and effective clinical care of older adults with pain, and attendant risks, together with the paucity of existing relevant work, much more education and research are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financing long-term care is a growing challenge in aging societies. To address this challenge, Germany created public long-term care insurance (DPV) more than 25 years ago. Germans still need to prepare for their own care throughout their life course to supplement public insurance. This study presents descriptive statistics and multivariate regression analysis to examine young Germans’ experiences and expectations of the relationship between the DPV and private financing sources. We base our analysis on a proprietary data set of young Germans (16–39 years old) that oversamples those with caregiving experience and East Germans. We find that public long-term care insurance is a substitute for rather than a complement to other financing sources. Specifically, many young Germans do not count on public long-term care insurance to finance care. Instead, they see private funding sources as substitutes for long-term care insurance. Those who count on private long-term care insurance are between 48 and 70% less likely to count on DPV benefits. Experience with care increases the likelihood of young Germans expecting future public benefits by factor of six or 18, depending on the specific care familiarity. Young Germans are also more likely to count on future generations to support their own care than they expect themselves to support the care of their parents through the DPV. Given that the DPV provides basic universal insurance that requires some complementary private income sources, our findings suggest that young Germans, who will need to build some of these income sources throughout their careers, are underestimating the value of the DPV and overestimating their own ability to pay for long-term care. Policymakers will need to reduce the political risks to the DPV and increase young Germans’ savings over the life-course to address this imbalance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an instrument designed to assess the Social Problem-Solving Self-Efficacy of freshmen engineering students. This instrument included 34 items and comprised of 5-dimensions: rational problem solving (RPO), positive problem orientation (PPO), avoidance style (AS), negative problem orientation (NPO) and impulsivity or carelessness style (ICS). This instrument was administered in the fall 2019 to freshmen engineering students at a large private southern Indian university. Exploratory factor analysis revealed 4-factors: positive approach towards problems (PAP), AS, NPO and ICS. For these 4-factors, Cronbach's alpha ranged between 0.63 to 0.87. t-test was conducted on the 4-factors to find the differences related to gender, background, and prior experience. For PAP, participants with prior experience reported higher self-efficacy than the participants without experience. For AS and NPO, participants without prior experience reported higher self-efficacy than the participants with experience. However, there were no significant difference on the four factors with respect to gender and background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Emergency, diagnostics, and surgical services are critical areas of hospitals both in terms of technicalities and resource creation. The literature review reflects that there is a need to develop a survey instrument-based measurement model that can identify areas of functional service quality within hospital facilities based on patients’ perspectives as hospital quality improvement initiatives. Objective: To design and validate an instrument that helps to evaluate the functional service quality of hospitals using structural equation modeling. Methods: It was a mixed-method research having a cross-sectional study design. A total of 817 responses were purposively collected from consumers of surgical, emergency, and diagnostic departments of tertiary care hospitals. Simple descriptive, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to identify the factors to formulate the instrument using SPSS Amos 20.0 Results: The study validated seven constructs for the development of Func.Qual (Survey instrument named to measure hospital functional service quality). Amongst these constructs’ assurance, responsiveness communication, and reliability are critical contributing factors reported earlier. Whereas promptness, food and aesthetics are new constructs extracted in local settings. The values of goodness of model fit indices found statistically valid with Comparative Fit Index (CFI=0.96), Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA=0.055) and Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR=0.05). Conclusion: Func.Qual is a powerful survey instrument to measure hospital functional service quality. The current study is an effort to enrich the literature associated with the body of knowledge for hospital functional service quality.

Transgender and gender nonbinary (TGNB) individuals are at high risk for HIV acquisition. However, TGNB individuals are often excluded from research and public health surveillance, both as participants and as reported sexual partners. This research study aimed to be inclusive, correctly classify TGNB participants, and accurately describe sex partners and sexual activity of participants to assess HIV risk while minimizing participant burden. The adaptation of survey questions designed for cisgender men to include TGNB participants and partners was feasible and relatively straightforward. However, additional work is still needed in this area to increase inclusivity and research participation by TGNB individuals. Clinical Trial Registration Number - NCT03584282. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION The acquisition of academic competencies is one of the main outcomes of the academization of midwifery education. To analyze midwives' views on the key academic competencies of the recently reformed midwifery education in Germany, an existing assessment instrument was adapted to the German context of care and psychometrically analyzed. Furthermore, it was investigated whether the relevance assessments of academic and non-academic midwives differ from each other. METHODS The study design was cross-sectional. A total of 193 (prospective) midwives answered the items on the assessed relevance of midwifery competencies in academic education (59 items); 3 items were added (referring to evidence-based practice and digital literacy). Construct validity was tested using exploratory factor analysis. Item and reliability analysis as well as unpaired t-tests were performed. RESULTS Considering insufficient item-construct associations (20 items), a single factorial solution best fits the data (eigenvalue: 18.36; explained variance: 29.60%). Internal reliability was demonstrated to be very good with Cronbach's a=0.954. The assessed relevance of academic midwifery competencies from academic and nonacademic midwives did not differ significantly from each other for students and trainee midwives (t=0.18; df=6.66; p=0.86), and for for midwives educated at vocational school and university (t= -0.035; df=106; p=0.97). CONCLUSIONS The adapted assessment tool can be used with minor modifications to reliably and validly measure the assessed relevance of academic competence from the midwives' perspective. Combined with data on the assessments of medical practitioners and laypersons, the assessment provides a substantial data basis for the development of a competence profile for academic midwifery education in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the dominance of customer co-creation experience value (CCEV) in the value co-creation research, its theoretical domain has not been systematically analysed and developed. Specifically, little is known about the nature of social media-enabled CCEV. To address the knowledge gaps, this study employs a five-step procedure to develop a conceptualisation and instrument of CCEV construct in a social media context. First, drawing on the relevant literature, we determine the conceptual framework, definition, and assumptions of CCEV. Second, we employ grounded theory methodology to analyse customer review data from three representative social media sites and identify the dimensions of CCEV (four themes consisting of 10 dimensions). Third, we create an item pool of CCEV based on the prior work and in-depth interviews of 10 customers. In the fourth and fifth steps, we collect three waves of quantitative data to develop and validate the instrument including item refinement (n1 = 234), instrument validation (n2 = 521), and nomological validity examination (n3 = 615). The results indicate that the instrument exhibits satisfactory reliability and validity. Our work contributes to theory and practice by presenting a context-specific and fine-grained conceptualisation of CCEV and a reliable and valid survey instrument. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An inquiry approach to learning can have a positive impact on students' attitudes to science and their science literacy skills; two attributes that have been in steady decline internationally. The professional development of teachers in inquiry science is one way to ensure that teachers are equipped with effective strategies to teach science, particularly in non-metropolitan schools where development opportunities may be limited, and students' attitudes to science are typically less positive than in metropolitan schools. Consequently, this study measured the attitudes to science and science self-efficacy of 133 school students aged 10–15 years from six non-metropolitan schools in Queensland, Australia, and explored the association with teachers' professional development in inquiry science. A survey instrument demonstrating good psychometric properties was derived to measure three components of students' multidimensional attitudes to science: acceptance of an inquiry approach to science, enjoyment of science lessons and career-interest in science. Findings showed that students' attitudes to science and science self-efficacy differed significantly among schools. Teachers' implementation of inquiry pedagogy in these schools was also varied. Students' acceptance of inquiry science, enjoyment of science, career-interest in science and self-efficacy were positively correlated and evident in classrooms that employed a collaborative inquiry approach to teaching science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Customer satisfaction studies in a business-to-business (B2B) information technology (IT) industry have primarily focused on assessing satisfaction at the project level. However, software organizations are unique due to the complex nature of the supplier-customer relationships; therefore, the requirements of customers at the project and engagement levels are quite different and convoluted. This research identifies the determinants of customer satisfaction in an IT scenario, at an engagement level, and proposes a measurement instrument for the same. Furthermore, the relationships among the various determinants of customer satisfaction and their effect on overall customer satisfaction are investigated using the structural equation modeling (SEM) approach. The SEM model was tested for model fit and adequacy through various indices and measures, thereby confirming the theory behind the proposed model. The present research will help practitioners better understand the relationships among the various elements in customer satisfaction measurement and management in software organizations. This study is perhaps the first of its kind in applying the SEM approach for evaluating customer satisfaction in the B2B IT industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trauma exposure is pervasive among juvenile justice involved youth. A growing appreciation for the prevalence of trauma and the challenges it poses to successful treatment has prompted youth serving organizations to adopt policies and practices that are consistent with trauma-informed care (TIC). Despite increased interest in integrating TIC into service provision, research on various TIC initiatives and juvenile outcomes is severely underdeveloped. Presently there are no validated instruments that can measure TIC at the organizational level in criminal and juvenile justice settings. To address this gap, the present study evaluates the internal structure and psychometric properties of two self-assessment surveys—for youth and staff—intended to measure organizational-level TIC in Florida Department of Juvenile Justice residential commitment programs. Data from 2761 youth and 2781 staff survey responses from 59 programs demonstrates that these instruments possess strong psychometric properties capable of measuring several distinct aspects of organizational TIC in a juvenile justice setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundThe Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services require that dialysis patients' health-related quality of life be assessed annually. The primary instrument used for this purpose is the Kidney Disease Quality of Life 36-Item Short-Form Survey (KDQOL-36), which includes the SF-12 as its generic core and 3 kidney disease-targeted scales: Burden of Kidney Disease, Symptoms and Problems of Kidney Disease, and Effects of Kidney Disease. Despite its broad use, there has been limited evaluation of KDQOL-36's psychometric properties.Study designSecondary analyses of data collected by the Medical Education Institute to evaluate the reliability and factor structure of the KDQOL-36 scales.Settings & participantsKDQOL-36 responses from 70,786 dialysis patients in 1,381 US dialysis facilities that permitted data analysis were collected from June 1, 2015, through May 31, 2016, as part of routine clinical assessment.Measurements & outcomesWe assessed the KDQOL-36 scales' internal consistency reliability and dialysis facility-level reliability using coefficient alpha and 1-way analysis of variance. We evaluated the KDQOL-36's factor structure using item-to-total scale correlations and confirmatory factor analysis. Construct validity was examined using correlations between SF-12 and KDQOL-36 scales and "known groups" analyses.ResultsEach of the KDQOL-36's kidney disease-targeted scales had acceptable internal consistency reliability (α=0.83-0.85) and facility-level reliability (r=0.75-0.83). Item-scale correlations and a confirmatory factor analysis model evidenced the KDQOL-36's original factor structure. Construct validity was supported by large correlations between the SF-12 Physical Component Summary and Mental Component Summary (r=0.40-0.52) and the KDQOL-36 scale scores, as well as significant differences on the scale scores between patients receiving different types of dialysis, diabetic and nondiabetic patients, and patients who were employed full-time versus not.LimitationsUse of secondary data from a clinical registry.ConclusionsThe study provides support for the reliability and construct validity of the KDQOL-36 scales for assessment of health-related quality of life among dialysis patients.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is expected to have a massive impact on people's lives. However, the system's complexity is also likely to make it an important topic of investigation in digital inequality research. Those who have the skills to use the IoT to its full potential and gain maximal benefits have a technology at hand that will have the power to increase their (already privileged) positions. Prerequisites for and impacts of user (consumer) engagement with the Internet of Things are becoming increasingly recognized as an important study area. To support related research and policy development, there is a need for more theoretically informed, reliable, and valid instruments that are able to measure what people do and gain from the IoT. In the current contribution, we focus on a key component in digital inclusion debates: digital skills. The development of the IoT Skills Scale (IoTSS) started with examining existing digital skills theory which led to a first instrument. We used a threefold approach to test the validity and reliability of the latent skill constructs and the corresponding items: cognitive interviews, followed by a first survey of IoT skills. During the final step, we examined the consistency of the IoT skills scales and their characteristics when measured in second survey among a representative sample survey of Dutch Internet users. The result is a theoretical and empirical consistent framework consisting of two types of IoT skills: operational and data IoT skills and strategic IoT skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The organizational culture (shared beliefs, perceptions, and values) of teams informs their behaviours and practices. Little is known about organizational culture for resuscitation teams. Our objective was to develop a reliable and valid resuscitation-specific organizational culture instrument (ROCI) with the goal of improving team performance., Methods: Using Neonatal Resuscitation Program principles, literature review, and discussion of existing culture measures with experts, we identified organizational culture components for resuscitation and adapted existing measures to resuscitation. We developed a ROCI with five subscales (role clarity, shared-mental models, closed-loop communication, team adaptability, and psychological safety) and administered it to neonatal resuscitation team members across a hospital network. Survey psychometric assessment included reliability analyses (Cronbach's α, Pearson correlation coefficients) and validity testing (confirmatory factor analysis [CFA] and regression models examining the association of culture with implementation outcomes: climate and perceived success)., Results: Across 11 hospitals there were 318 complete responses (41 % response rate). Of the 22-items tested, 18 were retained after iterative psychometric assessment. The ROCI had excellent overall reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.994) and very good subscale reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.789-0.867). The CFA goodness-of-fit statistics confirmed five constructs (subscales). At the individual-level, the ROCI and all subscales were associated with both implementation outcomes. At the hospital-level, the ROCI overall and three subscales were associated with perceived success., Conclusion: The ROCI is a reliable and valid measure of the organizational culture of resuscitation teams. Future ROCI assessments may provide a foundation to inform culture change initiatives to improve resuscitation quality and outcomes across populations and contexts., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R03HE108387 to SCH, CPB, and EEF and K23HD109426 to SCH) and the American Academy of Pediatrics Neonatal Resuscitation Program (to SCH). CPB discloses additional current and recently completed research grants from NIH, AHRQ, PCORI, and the National Science Foundation, none of which supported this work., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Purpose of this research was to explore the incidence, characteristics and consequences of blame-related distress and its relationship to moral distress. An instrument was created and validated and a conceptual model proposed for relating blame to similar constructs among clinical staff working in acute care.

Abstract Purpose The purpose of the study was to pilot test the English and Urdu version of the Colon Cancer Screening Behaviours Survey among South Asians in Canada. The first objective was to evaluate feasibility of administration, data collection using computer assisted personal interviewing software on a tablet, and response burden. The second objective was to examine the prevalence of colorectal cancer screening among South Asians and evaluate the psychometric properties of sub-scales in the survey. Methods Purposive, network and snowball sampling were used to recruit participants for this cross-sectional study. Interviewer-led administration of the Colon Cancer Screening Behaviours Survey was conducted across two cities in Ontario, Canada. Qualitative data analysis assessed feasibility; and sub-scales were evaluated through principal component analysis, item-scale correlations, and construct validity using multiple linear and logistic regression. Results A total of 328 South Asians participated, 47% Urdu speaking, and 53% English speaking. There was a 23% refusal rate to participate. Feasibility identified: (1) successful recruitment despite reasons for refusal; (2) problematic items and response categories; and (3) computer/tablet limitations. Principal component analysis identified 14 components that explained 68.7% of total variance; 34 items were retained after factor analysis. Internal consistency of 4 scales ranged from 0.79–0.91. There were significant differences in perceived barriers scale scores (− 12.21; 95% CI, − 17.13 to - 7.28; p

Purpose To design and evaluate a survey instrument to quantitatively examine radiologic technologists' perception of radiation safety culture. Methods A survey instrument with determinants related to radiation actions and dimensions of radiation safety (RADS) was designed through a multisequential process involving content and scale validity and internal reliability. A 6-member panel evaluated content validity, and 425 radiologic technologists participated in the study to determine the reliability of the survey instrument items and determinant scales. Results The 35-items in the survey instrument were found to be valid (content validity index = 0.995) and reliable (α = .94). In addition, 10 determinant scales also were found to be reliable (α = .70-.84). The scales included teamwork in imaging, teamwork across imaging stakeholders, questioning attitude, feedback loops, organizational learning, leadership actions, nonpunitive response, error reporting, radiation policy, and overall perception of radiation safety. Discussion The survey instrument meets recommendations to have a quantitative tool to assess radiation safety culture perception and represents the first instrument of its kind for radiologic technologists. The survey instrument is intended to assess perception of radiation safety culture, but the tool should be paired with clinically relevant outcome data to assess the alignment between radiologic technologist perception and objective radiation safety-related performance indicators. Conclusion The RADS survey instrument is a reliable and valid tool to examine radiologic technologists' perceptions of radiation safety culture in medical imaging. Survey use and subsequent process improvement and leadership intervention for areas of deficiency can strengthen radiation safety culture in medical imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Researchers are interested in using digital tools, such as physical activity trackers (PAT), to promote and measure physical activity. PAT is a fast-growing research area that measures movement therefore, reliable questions on the ownership and use of PATs among adolescent populations need to be developed. Objective: The aim of this study was to conduct an intra-rater test-retest reliability study on PAT survey items used for surveillance purposes among young adolescents in ownership and use of smartphone applications (apps) and heart rate monitors (HRM). Methods: Young adolescents (N = 755; 11-, 13-, and 15-year-olds) in the Olomouc region of the Czech Republic were recruited to complete the questionnaire with a three-week gap during autumn 2017. Kappa statistics were used for measuring reliability. Results: When items were dichotomised into owners and non-owners, there was moderate agreement for boys (apps Kappa = .563, HRM Kappa = .575) and girls (apps Kappa = .447, HRM Kappa = .443). Conclusions: Measures in ownership and use of PAT can be assumed reliable among young adolescents.

Abstract Background The World Mental Health-Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) 3.0, originally in English, is a fully-structured interview designed for the assessment of mental disorders. Although Arabic translations of CIDI from countries like Lebanon and Iraq exist, a Modern Standard Arabic translation was developed to suit the Saudi population. While the translation model used in the present paper has been used to translate instruments in Asian and European languages, there is no study to the best of our knowledge which has used this specific model to translate a validated instrument from English to Arabic. Case presentation This paper describes the Saudi adaptation of CIDI 3.0. The TRAPD team translation model—comprising of translation, review, adjudication, pretesting and documentation—was implemented to carry out the Saudi adaptation of CIDI 3.0. Pretests involving cognitive interviewing and pilot study led to translation revisions which consequently confirmed that Saudi respondents had a good understanding of various items of the instrument. The adaptation procedures for the Saudi CIDI 3.0 were well documented and the instrument was linguistically validated with the Saudi population. Conclusion The TRAPD model was successfully implemented to adapt the CIDI 3.0 to be used as the main survey instrument for the Saudi National Mental Health Survey, findings of which will provide health policy makers mental health indicators for health decision making and planning.

Capacity-building initiatives are popular among nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) worldwide. In response to a lack of valid and reliable capacity measures for NGOs working on various social issues, Shumate and colleagues developed an 8-dimension, 45-item NGO capacities instrument, based on data from U.S. NGOs. However, the proliferation of international research on NGO capacity raises questions about the degree to which such an instrument equally applies in other countries. To allow meaningful comparisons of NGO capacities across countries, we examine the measurement equivalence of this NGO capacity instrument across a matched sample of Chinese (N = 119) and U.S. (N = 150) NGOs. Findings suggest a new NGO capacity instrument, which comprises seven factors and 28 items and better accounts for the capacity of both Chinese and U.S. NGOs. Based on the new instrument, a series of comparative analyses highlight the influence of institutional factors on NGO capacities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: We conducted a pilot assessment of the feasibility of implementing the International Alcohol Control (IAC) Study in Ontario, Canada, to allow for future comparisons on the impacts of alcohol control policies with a number of countries. Methods: The IAC Study questionnaire was adapted for use in the province of Ontario, and a split-sample approach was used to collect data. Data were collected by computerassisted telephone interviewing of 500 participants, with half the sample each answering a subset of the adapted IAC Study survey. Results: Just over half of the sample (53.6%) reported high frequency drinking (once a week or more frequently), while 6.5% reported heavy typical occasion drinking (8 drinks or more per session). Self-reported rates of alcohol-related harms from one's own and others' drinking were relatively low. Attitudes towards alcohol control varied. A substantial majority supported more police spot checks to detect drinking and driving, while restrictions on the number of alcohol outlets and increases in the price of alcohol were generally opposed. Conclusion: This pilot study demonstrated that the IAC Study survey can be implemented in Canada with some modifications. Future research should assess how to improve participation rates and the feasibility of implementing the longitudinal aspect of the IAC Study. This survey provides additional insight into alcohol-related behaviours and attitudes towards alcohol control policies, which can be used to develop appropriate public health responses in the Canadian context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to pilot test the English and Urdu version of the Colon Cancer Screening Behaviours Survey among South Asians in Canada. The first objective was to evaluate feasibility of administration, data collection using computer assisted personal interviewing software on a tablet, and response burden. The second objective was to examine the prevalence of colorectal cancer screening among South Asians and evaluate the psychometric properties of sub-scales in the survey. Methods: Purposive, network and snowball sampling were used to recruit participants for this cross-sectional study. Interviewer-led administration of the Colon Cancer Screening Behaviours Survey was conducted across two cities in Ontario, Canada. Qualitative data analysis assessed feasibility; and sub-scales were evaluated through principal component analysis, item-scale correlations, and construct validity using multiple linear and logistic regression. Results: A total of 328 South Asians participated, 47% Urdu speaking, and 53% English speaking. There was a 23% refusal rate to participate. Feasibility identified: (1) successful recruitment despite reasons for refusal; (2) problematic items and response categories; and (3) computer/tablet limitations. Principal component analysis identified 14 components that explained 68.7% of total variance; 34 items were retained after factor analysis. Internal consistency of 4 scales ranged from 0.79–0.91. There were significant differences in perceived barriers scale scores (− 12.21; 95% CI, − 17.13 to - 7.28; p < 0.0001) between those who participated and those who did not participate in screening. No association was found with years of residence and uptake of screening after adjustment (OR 0.91 (0.46–1.79), p = 0.783). Conclusions: Recruitment and data collection methods are feasible among South Asians if functionality of the tablet selected is improved. The Colon Cancer Screening Behaviours Survey was finalized and retained items in sub-scales demonstrated good psychometric properties to assess behaviours for colon cancer screening among South Asians in Canada. The interviewer-led survey may be used by public health, cancer care or other health practitioners to describe or predict colorectal cancer screening behaviours among South Asians in similar settings or adapted and tested in other contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students' declining performance in science and mathematics is an issue of great international concern. Recently, educators and researchers have begun to focus on affective factors such as interest to better understand STEM learning and persistence. Therefore, there is a need for effective measures of STEM interest that allow it to be tracked over time and to provide opportunities for early interventions by educators. One such instrument was recently developed to measure youth interest in STEM as a general construct and in four domains associated with STEM: earth and space science, life science, technology and engineering, and mathematics. In this paper, we explore the psychometric properties of the measure scales by administering the instrument to a large sample of youth from both a traditional and STEM-focused school and examining theorized relationships using confirmatory factor analysis as part of a larger structural equation model. Results provided support for a single latent dimension of STEM interest, confirmed the existence of the four individual STEM interest dimensions, and provided evidence of structural and generalizability validity. We conclude that the instrument provides a sufficient means to measure STEM interest for adolescent youth within a variety of populations and educational contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are many tools for evaluating the learning outcomes measurements of the prelicensure nursing programs, but not for the postlicensure Registered Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN-to-BSN) programs (Farmer et al., 2017; Rodriguez, McNiesh, Goyal, & Apen, 2013). Despite the unprecedented growth in RN-to-BSN programs, including community college-based programs, there are limited learning outcome measurement tools available. This study presents the theoretical framework for designing, implementing, and evaluating an RN-to-BSN survey instrument. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explored the role of concurrent engineering (CE) and design for manufacturability and assembly (DFM/DFA) within the context of headquarters–maquiladora relationships. The objective of this paper was to determine which operational model was prevalent and describe the operational relationships between a headquarters and their maquiladoras. The maquiladora industry is a manufacturing model that utilises the Mexican workforce and foreign investment and technology on the border region between the USA and Mexico. This paper conducted an empirical investigation by distributing a survey instrument among maquiladora plants in El Paso, Texas and Juarez, Mexico. The reliability and validity tests, item correlation matrix, descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and structural equation modelling for design and manufacturing data were conducted. Appropriate conclusions and an assessment based on the results and 11 field interviews conducted with maquiladora managers were provided. The analyses indicated inconsistent results for design questions. There seemed to be a lack of understanding as to the role and function of design in the maquiladoras. It did not appear that maquiladoras were directly or heavily involved in the initial stages of design. Maquiladoras appeared, however, to be heavily involved in what is actually a re-design at the maquiladoras. The analyses indicated consistent and strong results for the important role that manufacturing played in the maquiladoras. Finally, future research directions were provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Medical ultrasound examinations are performed by diverse professional cohorts: sonographers are one group. Little evidence exists regarding the teaching practices used in medical ultrasonography and their effectiveness. We report the continued development and validation of an instrument to measure sonographer skill-teaching practice perceptions (SonoSTePs). Methods: An online survey was administered to a convenience sample of sonographers who were employed in Queensland, Australia. This paper reports on the continued psychometric testing of the measurement tool. Findings: The 25-item scale demonstrated good internal reliability. Exploratory factor analysis generated four factors with acceptable internal reliability: Factor 1 (Skill execution feedback, Cronbach’s α=0.89), Factor 2 (Cognitive overload, Cronbach’s α=0.68), Factor 3 (Teach new skill, Cronbach’s α=0.70), and Factor 4 (Assist learners scanning, Cronbach’s α=0.67). The combined instrument value was 0.83. The weighted kappa of the test–retest items identified that the majority of items achieved an interrater level of agreement of ≥0.5. Conclusion: Results indicate that the SonoSTePs instrument items and factors are underpinned by theories and principles related to teaching a complex psychomotor skill. The initial data suggest that the tool is both reliable and valid.

Objective: To measure strategies of interorganizational collaboration among health care and social service organizations that serve older adults.Study Setting: Twenty Hospital Service Areas (HSAs) in the United States.Study Design: We developed and validated a novel scale to characterize interorganizational collaboration, and then tested its application by assessing whether the scale differentiated between HSAs with high vs low performance on potentially avoidable health care use and spending for Medicare beneficiaries.Data Collection: Health care and social service organizations (N = 173 total) in each HSA completed a 12-item collaboration scale, three questions about collaboration behaviors, and a detailed survey documenting collaborative network ties.Principal Findings: We identified two distinguishable subscales of interorganizational collaboration: (a) Aligning Strategy and (b) Coordinating Current Work. Each subscale demonstrated convergent validity with the organization's position in the collaborative network, and with collaboration behaviors. The full scale and Coordinating Current Work subscale did not differentiate high- vs low-performing HSAs, but the Aligning Strategy subscale was significantly higher in high-performing HSAs than in low-performing HSAs (P = .01).Conclusions: Cross-sector collaboration-and particularly Aligning Strategy-is associated with health care use and spending for older adults. This new survey measure could be used to track the impact of interventions to foster interorganizational collaboration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A variety of studies have shown that social and academic integration are important indicators of future student success and satisfaction. They are therefore an important field of action for higher education development programmes. However, specifications of the theoretical models and empirical representations vary widely between researchers and countries. We reviewed the most important German and international questionnaires and studies on the topic. On the basis of this review as well as theoretical reflections, we developed a questionnaire which was successfully tested for validity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To date, there is no research or instrument that can collectively measure beginning students' transitional challenges, wellbeing, help-seeking, and adjustments to university. This paper addresses this research gap by theorising and describing the relationship between these constructs and by developing and assessing the psychometric properties of a scale to measure those, labelled as Transition, Wellbeing, Help-seeking, and Adjustments Scale (TWHAS). Data was collected from 306 first year students studying in an Australian university, using a self-reporting questionnaire. The analysis shows that the TWHAS is a sound and psychometrically valid instrument. This questionnaire makes a unique contribution to the students' transition literature in Higher Education. Its implications for universities, along with recommendations for further research, are also briefly discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Researchers are interested in using digital tools, such as physical activity trackers (PAT), to promote and measure physical activity. PAT is a fast-growing research area that measures movement therefore, reliable questions on the ownership and use of PATs among adolescent populations need to be developed. Objective: The aim of this study was to conduct an intra-rater test-retest reliability study on PAT survey items used for surveillance purposes among young adolescents in ownership and use of smartphone applications (apps) and heart rate monitors (HRM). Methods: Young adolescents (N = 755; 11-, 13-, and 15-year-olds) in the Olomouc region of the Czech Republic were recruited to complete the questionnaire with a three-week gap during autumn 2017. Kappa statistics were used for measuring reliability. Results: When items were dichotomised into owners and non-owners, there was moderate agreement for boys (apps Kappa = .563, HRM Kappa = .575) and girls (apps Kappa = .447, HRM Kappa = .443). Conclusions: Measures in ownership and use of PAT can be assumed reliable among young adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed and validated a tool assessing the adherence to the Mediterranean diet based on current nutritional recommendations for health promotion (MEDI-Quest). Four-hundred-and-eleven clinically healthy subjects completed both the MEDI-Quest-score and the validated MedDietScore (MDS). A good accordance between MEDI-Quest and MDS was observed (R = 0.638), as well as for the percentage of individuals having similar scores with both methods for each food group. Regarding socio-cultural-factors, higher adherence was observed in people with older-age (OR = 1.030, p < .0001), more qualifier-employment (OR = 1.136, p < .005), higher-income (OR = 1.925, p < .0001), interest in reading-food-labels (OR = 2.057, p < .0001), and having frequent physical activity (OR = 1.608, p < .05). In conclusion, our findings show that (1) the MEDI-Quest score well correlate with MDS, and (2) the adherence to the Mediterranean diet is not particularly high due to less cultural roots. It could be necessary to improve people's knowledge about food and nutrition, taking into consideration believes embedded in their family, tradition and religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Health literacy is a term employed to assess the ability of people to meet the increasing demands related to health in a rapidly evolving society. Low health literacy can affect the social determinants of health, health outcomes and the use of healthcare services. The purpose of the study was to develop a survey construct to assess health literacy within the context of regional culture. Different socioeconomic status among the Eastern and Middle Eastern countries may restrict, health information access and utilization for those with low literacy. Methods By employing expert panel, Delphi technique, focus group methodologies, and pre-testing using participants (N = 900) from the UAE and India, a survey construct to the Eastern-Middle Eastern cultures was developed. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach’s α and validity using Factor analysis. Kiaser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) sampling adequacy and Bartlett’s tests were used to assess the strength of the relationship among the variables. Results Inclusion of non-health related items were found to be critical in the authentic assessment of health literacy in the Eastern and Middle Eastern population given the influence of social desirability. Thirty-two percentage of the original 19-item construct was eliminated by the focus group for reasons of relevance and impact for the local culture. Field pretesting participants from two countries, indicated overall construct reliability (Cronbach’s α =0.85), validity and consistency (KMO value of 0.92 and Bartlett’s test of sphericity was significant). Conclusion The Eastern-Middle Eastern Adult Health Literacy (EMAHL13), screening instrument is brief, simple, a useful indicator of whether or not a patient can read. It assessespatients’ ability to comprehend by distinguishing between health and non-health related items. The EMAHL13 will be a useful too for the reliable assessment of health literacy in countries, where culture plays a significant impact. This will be the first steptowards providing equitable access to healthcare for countries that have large populations with low socioeconomic status.