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Evaluating Translations of Health Status Questionnaires: Methods From the IQOLA Project

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 March 2009

John E. Ware Jr. ,
Susan D. Keller ,
Barbara Gandek ,
John E. Brazier  and
Marianne Sullivan
John E. Ware Jr.
Affiliation:
New England Medical Center
Susan D. Keller
Affiliation:
New England Medical Center
Barbara Gandek
Affiliation:
New England Medical Center
John E. Brazier
Affiliation:
University of Sheffield
Marianne Sullivan
Affiliation:
University of Göteborg
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Abstract

There is growing demand for translations of health status questionnaires for use in multinational drug therapy studies and for population comparisons of health statistics. The International Quality of Life Assessment (IQOLA) Project is conducting a three-stage research program to determine the feasibility of translating the SF-36 Health Survey, widely used in English-speaking countries, into other languages. In stage 1, the conceptual equivalence and acceptability of translated questionnaires are evaluated and improved using qualitative and quantitative methods. In stage 2, assumptions underlying the construction and scoring of questionnaire scales are tested empirically. In stage 3, the equivalence of the interpretation of questionnaire scores across countries is tested using methods that closely approximate their intended use, and empirical results are compared. Data analyses from Sweden and the United Kingdom, as well as other research cited, support the feasibility of cross-cultural health measurement using the SF-36.

Type
General Essays
Information
International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care , Volume 11 , Issue 3 , Summer 1995 , pp. 525 - 551
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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