Translation and Psychometric Evaluation of a Korean Version of the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis-Specific Quality of Life – Revised

Abstract

Objective: The objective was to translate the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis-Specific Quality of Life - Revised instrument (ALSSQOL-R) into Korean and to examine the psychometric properties of the Korean amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) population.

Methods: The translation involved forward and backward translation. The psychometric properties of the Korean version of the ALSSQOL-R (K-ALSSQOL-R) were tested by patients in an ALS multidisciplinary clinic in Korea (n = 120). The internal consistency, test-retest reliability, content validity, criterion-related validity, and construct validity were evaluated.

Results: With regard to the reliability estimate, the internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.92) and the test–retest reliability (ICC = 0.89) were good. With regard to the validity estimate, the K-ALSSQOL-R demonstrated concurrent validity with the McGill Quality of Life Single-Item Scale (r = 0.62) and the first question of the World Health Organisation QOL Instrument-Brief (WHOQOL-BREF) (r = 0.64). The convergent validity and discriminant validity were acceptable. The confirmatory factor analysis supported a six-factor model.

Conclusion: The K-ALSSOQL-R can be used as a reliable and valid measure of QOL among Korean ALS patients.

Key words:

• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
• psychometrics
• quality of life
• reliability and validity
• translation

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for the assistance of the patients in this study. The authors gratefully acknowledge Professor Simmons (Penn State Hershey Medical Centre) for his permission to use the ALSSOQL and his valuable comments. The authors also would like to thank Professor Sujin Park (Hanyang University), Clinical psychologist Yu-sun Lee (Hanyang University Hospital), and the panel members for their helpful comments on this article.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Supplementary material available online