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Animal models are necessary to investigate the pathogenic features underlying motor neuron degeneration and for therapeutic development in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Measures of model validity allow for a critical interpretation of results from each model and caution from over-interpretation of experimental models. Face and construct validity refer to the similarity in phenotype and the proposed causal factor to the human disease, respectively. More recently developed models are restricted by limited phenotype characterization, yet new models hold promise for novel disease insights, thus highlighting their importance. In this article, we evaluate the features of face and construct validity of our new zebrafish model of environmentally-induced motor neuron degeneration and discuss this in the context of current environmental and genetic ALS models, including C9orf72, mutant Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase 1 and TAR DNA-binding protein 43 mouse and zebrafish models. In this mini-review, we discuss the pros and cons to validity criteria in each model. Our zebrafish model of environmentally-induced motor neuron degeneration displays convincing features of face validity with many hallmarks of ALS-like features, and weakness in construct validity. However, the value of this model may lie in its potential to be more representative of the pathogenic features underlying sporadic ALS cases, where environmental factors may be more likely to be involved in disease etiology than single dominant gene mutations. It may be necessary to compare findings between different strains and species modeling specific genes or environmental factors to confirm findings from ALS animal models and tease out arbitrary strain- and overexpression-specific effects.

The Japanese government has implemented a new screening program to promote measures to avoid worsening lifestyle-related diseases and frailty among the older population. In this effort, the government formulated a new health assessment questionnaire for the screening program of old-old adults aged ≥75 years. The questionnaire comprises 15 items, of which 12 address frailty, two address general health status, and one addresses smoking habits. This study examined the construct validity of this questionnaire, using the explanatory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The data used in this study were drawn from a mail-in survey conducted in 2020 as part of the Septuagenarians, Octogenarians, Nonagenarians Investigation with Centenarians study. A total of 1576 respondents (range, 78–99 years of age) were included in the study. Although the EFA did not show an interpretable factor structure of the questionnaire with 15 items, the CFA using only 12 frailty-related items showed the goodness of fit for a higher-order factor “frailty”, and the five frailty-related sub-factors model was acceptable. These results suggest that the total score of the 12 frailty-related items in the questionnaire can be used as an indicator of the degree of “frailty”.

This paper describes the process of the conduct of preliminary tests to determine the construct and content validity of the chosen data collection method for a study into the relationship between Islamic principles and objectives, Islamic financial law and takaful (slamic Insurance) operations and practices in Nigeria. Semi-structured interviews were tested on a select group of respondents mirroring the intended subjects in the field. The pilot test showed the construct to be both valid and reliable while giving the opportunity to insert refinements to the research tool.

Establishing the construct validity of virtual reality (VR) sports platforms is essential to ensure their effective and appropriate use with athletes. This study aimed to test: (1) the broad and fine construct validity of a commercially available VR golf game, and (2) whether real-world (RW) golf ability and videogame experience predicted VR golf performance. Thirty-three golfers and 32 non-golfers completed a 12-hole test (preceded by a five-hole familiarisation period), with their To Par score used as the performance measure. Self-reported current handicap, weekly golf hours, all-time videogame playing experience, and prior VR exposure was also recorded. A Welch’s t test found that golfers performed significantly better than non-golfers on the VR golf game (golfers M  = 12.5 ± 7.5; non-golfers M  = 27.5 ± 15.9), consistent with broad construct validity. VR golf performance was not predicted by current handicap, thereby failing to support fine construct validity. Weekly golf hours and prior VR exposure also did not predict VR golf performance, though videogame playing experience did, but only for the non-golfers group. Reduced motor correspondence (due to using a standard VR controller) and gamified features may explain the inability of the VR golf game to make fine-grained distinctions between golfers of varying abilities, whilst the minimal perception–action coupling afforded by videogames may account for the limited transfer of videogame experience to VR golf performance amongst golfers. Practitioners should ensure that VR sports platforms demonstrate (at least) broad construct validity before implementing them into the practices of their athletes.

This commentary provides a broader context for interpreting evidence from Latent Class and Latent Profile analyses on complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) that was provided in a recent contribution to the European Journal of Psychotraumatology. These data analytic strategies are not alone sufficient to test the construct validity of CPTSD. They base their conclusion on the empirical finding of substantial variation in latent models obtained with different analytic procedures and interpretations of the fit of different latent models, as well as interesting additional evidence of dispersion when individual patients' symptom counts and symptom severity scores on PTSD and CPTSD are examined. However, the results of their analyses actually do provide support for one feature of construct validity, demonstrating discriminant validity by showing a consistent differentiation between PTSD and CPTSD (with expectable variation in both PTSD and CPTSD severity level by persons). Even in a sample of patients diagnosed with PTSD, there may be a Disorders of Self Organization (DSO) sub-group with low PTSD symptom severity. More detailed examination of which DSO symptoms and sub-domains characterize the DSO sub-group and the CPTSD sub-group is needed in order to clarify the nature of the DSO/CPTSD construct. Other analyses needed to fully test construct validity also are described.

There is a lack of prevalent data for dumping syndrome (DS) and methods discriminating between different symptoms of the DS. A self-assessment questionnaire, the Dumping Symptom Rating Scale (DSRS), was developed. The aim was to measure the severity and frequency of nine dumping symptoms and to evaluate the construct validity of the DSRS. Pre- and 1 and 2 years after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery, 47 adults and 82 adolescents completed the DSRS. Cognitive interview was performed. Reliability and construct validity were tested. Effect sizes (ES) of changes were calculated. Patients found the questionnaire relevant. A high proportion of the respondents reported no symptoms affecting them negatively at all (floor effects). However, 12 % stated, quite severe, severe, or very severe problems regarding fatigue after meal and half of them were so tired that they needed to lie down. Nearly 7 % reported quite severe, severe, or very severe problems dominated by nausea and 6 % dominated by fainting esteem. The internal consistency reliability was adequate for both severity (0.81–0.86) and frequency (0.76–0.84) scales. ES were small, since some subjects experienced symptoms already preoperatively. Although most patients reported no or mild dumping symptoms 1 and 2 years after gastric bypass surgery, around 12 % had persistent symptoms, in particular, postprandial fatigue, and needed to lie down. Another 7 % had problems with nausea and 6 % had problems with fainting esteem. The DSRS is a reliable screening tool to identify these patients.

Background Lack of physicians’ knowledge regarding mental health, including Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) could have adverse effects on affected individuals’ health and quality of life. The purpose of this study was to provide construct validity for a modified questionnaire in order to determine the self-reported competency for underlying sub-constructs in ASD, make inferences on perceived competence in ASD based on a sample of Romanian physicians, and identify physicians’ characteristics associated with these sub-domains of competency. Methods For this survey, we modified a questionnaire that was used in Pakistan and Turkey, and administered it to a sample of 383 practicing physicians in Romania to assess their perceived competency regarding ASD. Exploratory factor analysis on 12 knowledge questions revealed five sub-domains: stigma, potential causes, children’s behavior, misconceptions, and educational needs associated with ASD knowledge. Using General Linear Models, we determined physicians’ characteristics that predict the total competency score and various competency sub-scores. Results Seventy-five percent of the responding physicians were female and 30% had over 30 years practicing medicine. The majority (73–94%) of physicians have correctly responded to some basic questions regarding knowledge about ASD. We also found that younger physicians were more knowledgeable about potential causes of ASD than older physicians (Adjusted Mean Score (AMS): 2.90 vs. 2.18, P  < 0.01), while older physicians knew more about the behavior of children with ASD (AMS: 0.64 vs. 0.37, P  = 0.02). We found a significant interaction ( P  < 0.01) between television as source of ASD knowledge and city where the clinic is located in relation to knowledge of the physicians regarding stigma related to ASD. However, the total score was not associated with the variables associated with sub-domains. Conclusion Using factor analysis, we demonstrated construct validity of five sub-domains related to Romanian physicians’ knowledge about ASD that include stigma, potential causes, behavior in ASD children, special education needs, and misconceptions related to ASD. The lack of significant association of the knowledge of physicians on ASD neither with the Psychiatry nor the Pediatric ward rotations at medical school may support the need for improving the curriculum on ASD in Romanian medical schools.

Objectives. Although widely used and reported in research for the evaluation of groups, measures of health status and health-related quality of life have had little application in clinical practice for the assessment of individual patients. One of the principal barriers is the demonstration that these measures add clinically significant information to measures of function or symptoms alone. Here, we review the methods for evaluation of construct validity in longitudinal studies and make recommendations for nomenclature, reporting of study results, and future research agenda. Methods. Analytical review. Results. The terms \"sensitivity\" and \"responsiveness\" have been used interchangeably, and there are few studies that evaluate the extent to which health status or health-related quality-of life measures capture clinically important changes (\"responsiveness\"). Current methods of evaluating responsiveness are not standardized or evaluated. Approaches for the assessment of a clinically significant or meaningful change are described; rather than normative information, however, standardized transition questions are proposed. They would be reported routinely and as separate axes of description to capture individual perceptions. Conclusions. Research in methods to assess the subject's evaluation of the importance and magnitude of a measured change are critical if health status and health-related quality-of-life measures are to have an impact on patient care.

Background: Stigma towards COVID-19 may negatively impact people who suffer from it and those supporting and treating them. Objective: To develop and validate a scale to assess 11-item COVID-19–related stigma. Methods: A total of 696 pregnant women at a gestational age of 12 to 15 weeks were surveyed using an online survey with a newly developed scale for COVID-19 stigma and other variables. The internal consistency of the scale was calculated using omega indices. We also examined the measurement invariance of the scale. Results: Exploratory factor analyses (EFAs) of the scale items were conducted using a halved sample (n = 350). Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) among the other halved sample (n = 346) compared the single-, two-, three-, and four-factor structure models derived from the EFAs. The best model included the following three-factor structure (χ2/df = 2.718, CFI = 0.960, RMSEA = 0.071): Omnidirectional Avoidance, Attributional Avoidance, and Hostility. Its internal consistency was excellent (all omega indices > 0.70). The three-factor structure model showed configuration, measurement, and structural invariances between primiparas and multiparas, and between younger (less than 32 years) and older women (32 years or older). Fear of childbirth, mother–fetal bonding, obsessive compulsive symptoms, depression, adult attachment self-model, and borderline personality traits were not significantly correlated with the Omnidirectional Avoidance subscale but correlated with the Attributional Avoidance and Hostility subscales (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The findings suggested that our scale for COVID-19 stigma was robust in its factor structure, as well as in construct validity.

Although workplace incivility has received increasing attention in organizational research over the past two decades, there have been recurring questions about its construct validity, especially vis-à-vis other forms of workplace mistreatment. Also, the antecedents of experienced incivility remain understudied, leaving an incomplete understanding of its nomological network. In this meta-analysis using Schmidt and Hunter's [Methods of meta-analysis: Correcting error and bias in research findings (3rd ed.), Sage] random-effect meta-analytic methods, we validate the construct of incivility by testing its reliability, convergent and discriminant validity, as well as its incremental predictive validity over other forms of mistreatment. We also extend its nomological network by drawing on the perpetrator predation framework to systematically study the antecedents of experienced incivility. Based on 105 independent samples and 51,008 participants, we find extensive support for incivility's construct validity. Besides, we demonstrate that demographic characteristics (gender, race, rank, and tenure), personality traits (agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, negative affectivity, and self-esteem), and contextual factors (perceived uncivil climate and socially supportive climate) are important antecedents of experienced incivility, with contextual factors displaying a stronger association with incivility. In a supplementary primary study with 457 participants, we find further support for the construct validity of incivility. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of this study. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).