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The Swedish Version of the Electronic Health Literacy Scale: Prospective Psychometric Evaluation Study Including Thresholds Levels.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:To enhance the efficacy of information and communication, health care has increasingly turned to digitalization. Electronic health (eHealth) is an important factor that influences the use and receipt of benefits from Web-based health resources. Consequently, the concept of eHealth literacy has emerged, and in 2006 Norman and Skinner developed an 8-item self-report instrument to measure these skills: the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS). However, the eHEALS has not been tested for reliability and validity in the general Swedish population and no threshold values have been established. OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to translate and adapt eHEALS into a Swedish version; evaluate convergent validity and psychometric properties; and determine threshold levels for inadequate, problematic, and sufficient eHealth literacy. METHODS:Prospective psychometric evaluation study included 323 participants equally distributed between sexes with a mean age of 49 years recruited from 12 different arenas. RESULTS:There were some difficulties translating the English concept health resources. This resulted in this concept being translated as health information (ie, Hälsoinformation in Swedish). The eHEALS total score was 29.3 (SD 6.2), Cronbach alpha .94, Spearman-Brown coefficient .96, and response rate 94.6%. All a priori hypotheses were confirmed, supporting convergent validity. The test-retest reliability indicated an almost perfect agreement, .86 (P<.001). An exploratory factor analysis found one component explaining 64% of the total variance. No floor or ceiling effect was noted. Thresholds levels were set at 8 to 20 = inadequate, 21 to 26 = problematic, and 27 to 40 = sufficient, and there were no significant differences in distribution of the three levels between the Swedish version of eHEALS and the HLS-EU-Q16. CONCLUSIONS:The Swedish version of eHEALS was assessed as being unidimensional with high internal consistency of the instrument, making the reliability adequate. Adapted threshold levels for inadequate, problematic, and sufficient levels of eHealth literacy seem to be relevant. However, there are some linguistic issues relating to the concept of health resources.

SUBMITTER: Wangdahl J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7063530 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The Swedish Version of the Electronic Health Literacy Scale: Prospective Psychometric Evaluation Study Including Thresholds Levels.

Wångdahl Josefin J Jaensson Maria M Dahlberg Karuna K Nilsson Ulrica U

JMIR mHealth and uHealth 20200224 2

<h4>Background</h4>To enhance the efficacy of information and communication, health care has increasingly turned to digitalization. Electronic health (eHealth) is an important factor that influences the use and receipt of benefits from Web-based health resources. Consequently, the concept of eHealth literacy has emerged, and in 2006 Norman and Skinner developed an 8-item self-report instrument to measure these skills: the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS). However, the eHEALS has not been tested f ...[more]

PMID: 32130168

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Project description:BackgroundHealth information is often communicated through the internet. It is vital for the end user to have a range of digital skills as well as understand the information to promote their health. There is a valid and reliable 8-item instrument, the Electronic Health Literacy Scale (eHEALS), that evaluates these skills. The number of Arabic-speaking people migrating to Sweden and to other parts of the world is increasing due to unstable military and political situations in their countries of origin. Poor health and limited health literacy have been described in this population in Sweden. Still, to our knowledge, an Arabic version of eHEALS has not been tested for validity or reliability. Thus, Arabic-speaking populations in Sweden cannot be included in studies measuring eHealth literacy, which does not support equal treatment in health care.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to translate and adapt the original English eHEALS version into Arabic and to evaluate its psychometric properties.MethodsThe eHEALS was rigorously translated, adapted, and evaluated for content validity. We conducted prospective psychometric evaluation with natively Arabic-speaking participants living in Sweden. Construct validity, factor structure, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability were evaluated using Spearman correlation, principal component analysis, Cronbach α, and weighted quadratic Cohen κ, respectively.ResultsThe study population consisted of Arabic-speaking participants (n=298; age: mean 41.8 years, SD 10.5). Construct validity was supported with weak and moderate correlations. Principal component factor analysis revealed a one-factor structure. Internal consistency was high (Cronbach α=0.92); test-retest reliability was acceptable (weighted quadratic Cohen κ=0.76). Evaluation indicated that eHealth literacy threshold values should be dichotomized (limited and sufficient) rather than trichotomized (inadequate, problematic, and sufficient).ConclusionsThe Arabic version of eHEALS, a unidimensional scale that is valid and reliable for measuring eHealth literacy among natively Arabic-speaking people in Sweden, was found to be acceptable and feasible in a general population.

Project description:ObjectivesThe aim was to psychometrically test and evaluate the Swedish functional health literacy scale and the Swedish communicative and critical health literacy scale in patients undergoing bariatric surgery.DesignA prospective cross-sectional psychometric study.SettingPatients from three bariatric centres in Sweden were consecutively included in this study.ParticipantsA total of 704 patients undergoing bariatric surgery filled in the questionnaires preoperatively. Inclusion criteria were scheduled for primary bariatric surgery (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass or sleeve gastrectomy) and greater than 17 years, proficiency in Swedish.Primary and secondary measuresPsychometric outcomes of the Swedish Functional Health Literacy scale and the Swedish Communicative and Critical Health Literacy scale.ResultsThere was a higher proportion of females (74.4%, n=523) to males (25.6%, n=180). The mean age was 42 years (SD 11.5). Limited functional health literacy and limited communicative and critical health literacy (including both inadequate and problematic health literacy) was reported in 55% (n=390) and 40% (n=285), respectively. Cronbach alpha for the Swedish Functional Health Literacy scale was α=0.86 and for the Swedish Communicative and Critical Health Literacy scale, α=0.87. Construct validity showed weak to negative correlations between the Swedish Functional Health Literacy scale and income, education and SF-36/RAND36 summary scores. Confirmatory factor analysis showed a one-factor solution for the Swedish Functional Health Literacy scale and a two-factor solution for the Swedish Communicative and Critical Health Literacy scale.ConclusionsThe Swedish Functional Health Literacy scale and the Swedish Communicative and Critical Health Literacy scale are valid and reliable to use for patients undergoing bariatric surgery in a Swedish context. Measuring dimensions of health literacy can be used as a guide for the development of health literacy friendly patient information in patients undergoing bariatric surgery.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Web-based technology has recently become an important source for sharing health information with patients after an acute cardiac event. Therefore, consideration of patients' perceived electronic health (eHealth) literacy skills is crucial for improving the delivery of patient-centered health information. OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to translate and adapt the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) to conditions in Norway, and to determine its psychometric properties. More specifically, we set out to determine the reliability (internal consistency, test-retest) and construct validity (structural validity, hypotheses testing, and cross-cultural validity) of the eHEALS in self-report format administered to patients after percutaneous coronary intervention. METHODS:The original English version of the eHEALS was translated into Norwegian following a widely used cross-cultural adaptation process. Internal consistency was calculated using Cronbach ?. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to assess the test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed for a priori-specified 1-, 2-, and 3-factor models. Demographic, health-related internet use, health literacy, and health status information was collected to examine correlations with eHEALS scores. RESULTS:A total of 1695 patients after percutaneous coronary intervention were included in the validation analysis. The mean age was 66 years, and the majority of patients were men (1313, 77.46%). Cronbach ? for the eHEALS was >.99. The corresponding Cronbach ? for the 2-week retest was .94. The test-retest ICC for eHEALS was 0.605 (95% CI 0.419-0.743, P<.001). The CFA showed a modest model fit for the 1- and 2-factor models (root mean square error of approximation>0.06). After modifications in the 3-factor model, all of the goodness-of-fit indices indicated a good fit. There was a weak correlation with age (r=-0.206). Between-groups analysis of variance showed a difference according to educational groups and the eHEALS score, with a mean difference ranging from 2.24 (P=.002) to 4.61 (P<.001), and a higher eHEALS score was found for patients who were employed compared to those who were retired (mean difference 2.31, P<.001). The eHEALS score was also higher among patients who reported using the internet to find health information (95% CI -21.40 to -17.21, P<.001), and there was a moderate correlation with the patients' perceived usefulness (r=0.587) and importance (r=0.574) of using the internet for health information. There were also moderate correlations identified between the eHEALS score and the health literacy domains appraisal of health information (r=0.380) and ability to find good health information (r=0.561). Weak correlations with the mental health composite score (r=0.116) and physical health composite score (r=0.116) were identified. CONCLUSIONS:This study provides new information on the psychometric properties of the eHEALS for patients after percutaneous coronary intervention, suggesting a multidimensional rather than unidimensional construct. However, the study also indicated a redundancy of items, indicating the need for further validation studies. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03810612; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03810612.

Project description:Procrastination is a prevalent self-regulatory failure associated with stress and anxiety, decreased well-being, and poorer performance in school as well as work. One-fifth of the adult population and half of the student population describe themselves as chronic and severe procrastinators. However, despite the fact that it can become a debilitating condition, valid and reliable self-report measures for assessing the occurrence and severity of procrastination are lacking, particularly for use in a clinical context. The current study explored the usefulness of the Swedish version of three Internet-administered self-report measures for evaluating procrastination; the Pure Procrastination Scale, the Irrational Procrastination Scale, and the Susceptibility to Temptation Scale, all having good psychometric properties in English.In total, 710 participants were recruited for a clinical trial of Internet-based cognitive behavior therapy for procrastination. All of the participants completed the scales as well as self-report measures of depression, anxiety, and quality of life. Principal Component Analysis was performed to assess the factor validity of the scales, and internal consistency and correlations between the scales were also determined. Intraclass Correlation Coefficient, Minimal Detectable Change, and Standard Error of Measurement were calculated for the Irrational Procrastination Scale.The Swedish version of the scales have a similar factor structure as the English version, generated good internal consistencies, with Cronbach's ? ranging between .76 to .87, and were moderately to highly intercorrelated. The Irrational Procrastination Scale had an Intraclass Correlation Coefficient of .83, indicating excellent reliability. Furthermore, Standard Error of Measurement was 1.61, and Minimal Detectable Change was 4.47, suggesting that a change of almost five points on the scale is necessary to determine a reliable change in self-reported procrastination severity.The current study revealed that the Pure Procrastination Scale, the Irrational Procrastination Scale, and the Susceptibility to Temptation Scale are both valid and reliable from a psychometric perspective, and that they might be used for assessing the occurrence and severity of procrastination via the Internet.The current study is part of a clinical trial assessing the efficacy of Internet-based cognitive behavior therapy for procrastination, and was registered 04/22/2013 on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01842945).

Project description:BackgroundHealth assessment among individuals with mental health problems often involves measures of ill-being (e.g., anxiety, depression). Health is, however, defined as a state of physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease (WHO, 1948, 2001). Hence, in order to address mental illness during the 21st century, we need to develop methods for the prevention, identification and treatment of mental illness; but also, for the promotion, identification, and maintenance of well-being. In this context, over three decades of subjective well-being research have resulted in the development of measures of positive aspects of human life, such as the Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener et al., 1985). Our aim was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Satisfaction with Life Scale in a Swedish population of individuals with mental illness using both Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Item Response Theory (IRT).MethodA total of 264 participants (age mean = 43.46, SD = 13.31) diagnosed with different types of mental illness answered to the Swedish version of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (five items, 7-point scale: 1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree).ResultsWe found positive and significant relationships between the five items of the scale (r ranging from 0.37 to 0.75), good reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.86), and that the one-factor solution had best goodness of fit (loadings between 0.52-0.88, p < 0.001). Additionally, there were no significant differences in comparative fit indexes regarding gender and occupation status. All items had high discrimination values (between 1.95-3.81), but item 5 ("If I could live my life over, I would change almost nothing"); which had a moderate discrimination value (1.17) and the highest estimated difficulty on response 7 (3.06). Moreover, item 2 ("The conditions of my life are excellent") had less discrimination and redundant difficulty with both item 1 ("In most ways my life is close to my ideal"; 2.03) on response 7 and with item 3 ("I am satisfied with my life"; -1.21) on response 1. The five items together provided good information, with especial good reliability and small standard error within -1.00 up to about 2.00 and the highest amount of test information at 0.00 of the level of life satisfaction within this population.ConclusionsConsistent with previous research, the scale had good reliability and provided good information across most of the latent trait range. In addition, within this population, sociodemographic factors such as gender and occupation status do not influence how individuals respond to the items in the scale. However, the items couldn't measure extreme levels of low/high life satisfaction. We suggest replication of these findings, the test of additional items, and the modification of items 2 and 5 in order to use the scale among individuals with mental illness.

Dataset Information

The Swedish Version of the Electronic Health Literacy Scale: Prospective Psychometric Evaluation Study Including Thresholds Levels.

Publications

The Swedish Version of the Electronic Health Literacy Scale: Prospective Psychometric Evaluation Study Including Thresholds Levels.

Similar Datasets

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