Psychometric properties of the Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale: a Korean version

Smoking is considerably more common among Korean American male individuals compared with all U.S. males, but no reliable and valid nicotine withdrawal scale has been available to measure withdrawal symptoms from the Korean American perspective, which is the aim of the present study. Translation and back-translation of the Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale (MNWS) was conducted to obtain a measure consistent with the Korean cultural understanding of smoking withdrawal symptoms. Following satisfactory interrater agreements, the Korean version (MNWS-K) was administered to 118 Korean American male smokers. Data were analyzed for internal consistency reliability and stability as well as construct validity. Internal consistency reliability was satisfactory for the total scale and factors (.88, .88, .79) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for the total score over a 1-month period was fair (r = .51). Exploratory factor analysis with orthogonal rotation yielded two factors. Together, Factor I, early-occurring disturbances in mental functioning, and Factor II, disturbances in physiological functioning and late-occurring disturbances in mental functioning, explained 66% of the variance in the scale. Theoretically related variables to the MNWS-K, number of smoking quit attempts and self-efficacy, showed modest but statistically significant correlations with the MNWS-K total and factored scales. Satisfactory internal consistency coefficients together with the validity findings suggest the MNWS-K warrants use with the Korean American population.