Jl. Fuh et al., Psychometric evaluation of a Chinese (Taiwanese) version of the SF-36 health survey amongst middle-aged women from a rural community, QUAL LIFE R, 9(6), 2000, pp. 675-683
To test the psychometric properties of the Chinese (Taiwanese) version of t
he short form 36 health survey (SF-36), 1439 women, aged 40-54 years and li
ving in Kinmen (a Taiwanese island reflecting a predominantly rural communi
ty) were recruited to participate in this survey. The rate of unavailable d
ata points for the 36 tested items remained consistently low, and item-disc
riminate validity was high (95%) for all subscales. Cronbach's alpha coeffi
cient remained above the 0.70 threshold criterion for all scales except for
social functioning and bodily pain. Principal components analysis supporte
d the two major dimensions of health, physical and mental, in the internal
structure of the SF-36 scales, although the dimensions did not match the hy
pothesized association very well. Poorer health profiles were associated wi
th physical and mental conditions. The mental health subscores in the SF-36
test correlated highly with the associated hospital anxiety and depression
score (Spearman rank correlation coefficient = -0.62). In conclusion, the
reliability and validity tests performed on the data collected support the
cross-cultural application of the Chinese (Taiwanese) version of the SF-36
test.