Validation of a Chinese version of the short-form Cataldo lung cancer stigma scale

Lung cancer stigma is a widespread psychosocial problem. We developed a short form of the Cataldo lung cancer stigma scale for Chinese people with lung cancer (CLCSS-C-SF) and compared its psychometric properties with those of the full and short versions.

This was a secondary analysis using data from the full CLCSS-C, distress thermometer and perceived social support of Chinese people with lung cancer (N = 394). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to identify factor structure and assess construct validity. The internal consistency and concurrent and known-group validity were evaluated.

The 22-item CLCSS-C-SF comprised four factors. The convergent validity evaluated using average variance extracted and discriminant validity were acceptable. Cronbach's alphas, concurrent and known-group validity were satisfactory for three versions. Only the four-factor model proposed was validated by CFA.

The CLCSS-C-SF is reliable and valid and can be used in Chinese lung cancer populations.