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. 2022 Jan 14:1-14.
doi: 10.1007/s11469-021-00742-5. Online ahead of print.

Psychometric Properties of an Instrument to Assess the Fear of COVID-19 in a Sample in Argentina: a Mixed Approach

Orlando Scoppetta  1 , Carlos Arturo Cassiani-Miranda  2 , Yinneth Andrea Arismendy-López  2 , Andrés Felipe Tirado-Otálvaro  3
Affiliations

Psychometric Properties of an Instrument to Assess the Fear of COVID-19 in a Sample in Argentina: a Mixed Approach

Orlando Scoppetta et al. Int J Ment Health Addict. .

Abstract

The FCV-19S was the first instrument designed to assess the severity of fear related to COVID-19 and has already been validated in many languages. The objective of this study was to evaluate the homogeneity and construct validity of the 5-item version of the FCV19S, using an online questionnaire in 599 people. The participants' age ranged from 18 to 65 years. Age, gender, marital status, educational level, employment status, and socioeconomic status were analyzed. In the evaluation process we assessed interitem correlation, item rest-correlation, confirmatory factor analysis: Root Mean Square Error of Approximation, Comparative Fix Index, Tucker-Lewis Index; internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha, McDonald's omega), and the Rasch model was assessed for learning more about the psychometric properties of the scale, which allows a detailed knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of a scale. The FCV-5S has adequate psychometric indicators from the perspective of the Classical Theory of Items. The major limitations were using a self-reported measure and having a convenience sample not necessarily representative of the general population of Argentina.

Keywords: COVID-19; Confirmatory factor analysis; Fear of COVID-19; Psychometrics; Urban population; Validation studies.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of InterestThe authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Person-item Wright map
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Differential item measure ordered by item difficulty
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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