The construct validity of perceived disability scale in people with epilepsy

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Epilepsy poses significant risks for disability and functional impairment.
• Socioeconomic factors and underlying conditions contribute to these challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the factor structure and construct validity of the Perceived Disability Scale.
• To adapt the scale for use with epilepsy patients in Turkey.

Main Methods:

• Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were employed.
• Reliability and validity were assessed using internal consistency, ANOVAs, and t-tests.
• 106 epilepsy patients participated in the study.

Main Results:

• The Perceived Disability Scale demonstrated a three-factor structure: dissatisfaction, pessimism, and self-disdain.
• This structure explained 68.54% of the variance.
• Significant differences in perceived disability were observed concerning age, education, disease duration, and seizure frequency.

Conclusions:

• The Perceived Disability Scale shows preliminary construct validity and reliability in the Turkish epilepsy population.
• Perceived disability is influenced by demographic and clinical factors, excluding gender.
• Further research with diverse samples is recommended to refine the understanding of epilepsy-related disability.