Spanish-dementia knowledge assessment scale (DKAS-S): psychometric properties and validation.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychometrics
• Public Health

Background:

• Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a leading cause of cognitive impairment.
• Community knowledge about AD is crucial for intervention development and effectiveness evaluation.
• Standardized, multilingual tools are needed to assess dementia knowledge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a cross-cultural adaptation of the Spanish Dementia Knowledge Assessment Scale (DKAS-S).
• To evaluate the psychometric properties (validity, reliability, feasibility) of the DKAS-S.
• To assess dementia knowledge among health students and caregivers in Spain.

Main Methods:

• Forward-back-forward translation of the original DKAS into Spanish.
• Cross-sectional study involving 846 participants (students, professional caregivers, non-professional caregivers).
• Assessment of internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and construct validity via confirmatory factor analysis.

Main Results:

• The 25-item DKAS-S exhibited good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.819) and test-retest reliability.
• The scale demonstrated sensitivity to change after an educational intervention in a subgroup of students.
• Confirmatory factor analysis supported construct validity, with minor challenges regarding item inclusion in original factors.

Conclusions:

• The DKAS-S is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring dementia knowledge in the Spanish population.
• The scale is suitable for use with health students, professional caregivers, and non-professional caregivers.
• The adapted scale facilitates standardized assessment of dementia awareness across diverse Spanish-speaking groups.