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The Memory Failures of Everyday Questionnaire (MFE): Internal Consistency and Reliability

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 January 2013

Pedro Montejo Carrasco ,
Mercedes Montenegro Peña  and
Manuel J. Sueiro
Pedro Montejo Carrasco*
Affiliation:
Ayuntamiento de Madrid (Spain)
Mercedes Montenegro Peña
Affiliation:
Ayuntamiento de Madrid (Spain)
Manuel J. Sueiro
Affiliation:
Universidad Complutense (Spain)
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Pedro Montejo Carrasco. Centro de Prevención del Deterioro Cognitivo, Instituto de Salud Pública. C/ Montesa 22, Edificio B, 28006, Madrid (Spain). Phone: +34-915886789. Fax: +34-915886793. E-mail: montejop@madrid.es
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Abstract

The Memory Failures of Everyday Questionnaire (MFE) is one of the most widely-used instruments to assess memory failures in daily life. The original scale has nine response options, making it difficult to apply; we created a three-point scale (0-1-2) with response choices that make it easier to administer. We examined the two versions' equivalence in a sample of 193 participants between 19 and 64 years of age. The test-retest reliability and internal consistency of the version we propose were also computed in a sample of 113 people. Several indicators attest to the two forms' equivalence: the correlation between the items' means (r = .94; p < .001) and the order of the items' frequencies (r = .92; p < .001). However, the correlation between global scores on the two forms was not very high (r = .67; p < .001). The results indicate this new version has adequate reliability and internal consistency (rxx' = .83; p < .001; α = .83; p < .001) equivalent to those of the MFE 1-9. The MFE 0-2 provides a brief, simple evaluation, so we recommend it for use in clinical practice as well as research.

El Cuestionario de Fallos de Memoria de la Vida Cotidiana (MFE) es uno de los instrumentos más utilizados para valorar los olvidos cotidianos. La escala original tiene nueve opciones de respuesta lo que dificulta su aplicación; hemos elaborado una nueva escala de tres opciones de respuestas (0-1-2) más sencilla de administrar. La equivalencia entre ambas versiones se estudió en una muestra de 193 participantes de 19 a 64 años. También se estimó la fiabilidad test-retest y consistencia interna de la versión propuesta en otra muestra de 113 personas. Varios indicadores mostraron la equivalencia entre ambas formas: la correlación entre las medias de los elementos (r = .94; p < .001) y el orden de las frecuencias de los ítems (r = .92; p < .001). Sin embargo la correlación entre las puntuaciones globales de las dos formas no fue muy elevada (r = .67; p < .001). Respecto a la fiabilidad y consistencia interna de la nueva versión los resultados fueron adecuados (rxx' = .83; p < .001; α = .83; p < .001), y equivalentes a los del MFE 1-9. El MFE 0-2 ofrece un sistema de valorar breve y sencillo por lo que recomendamos su uso en la práctica clínica y en la investigación.

Keywords

MFEmemory assessmentmemory complaintseveryday memory failuresmemory questionnairesMFEevaluación de memoriaquejas de memoriaolvidos cotidianoscuestionarios de memoria
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 15 , Issue 2 , July 2012 , pp. 768 - 776
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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