Readability assessment of self-report hyperacusis questionnaires

Abstract

Objective: To assess the overall readability of five currently available hyperacusis questionnaires and to assess the variability of single items within each questionnaire.

Design: Comparative study of self-report hyperacusis questionnaires: (1) Geräuschüberempfindlichkeits-Fragebogen (GUF), (2) Noise Avoidance Questionnaire (NAQ), (3) Hyperacusis Questionnaire (HQ), (4) Sound Sensitive-Tinnitus Index (SSTI), and (5) Inventory of Hyperacusis Symptoms (IHS). Well-established readability formulas Flesh-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL), Flesch Reading Ease (FRE), Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) and FORCAST and a computerised readability calculation software were used.

Study sample: Five questionnaires.

Results: Reading levels calculated by each formula varied for every questionnaire. Readability scores ranged from 7.7th to 12.7th grade for overall readability depending on the questionnaire. This exceeded the grade reading levels of 5th–6th grade (10–12 years old) as recommended by the American Medical Association or 7th–8th grade (12–14 years old) as recommended by the US National Institutes of Health. Single item readability analysis based on FKGL revealed that 32%–70% of single items are written above the recommended grade levels.

Conclusion: All five questionnaires are written at close to or exceeding the recommended grade levels. This requires attention from developers but also when interpreting the questionnaire scores obtained in clinic.

Keywords:

• Readability
• health literacy
• hyperacusis
• self-report questionnaires
• reduced sound tolerance

Acknowledgements

The views expressed are those of author(s) and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).