Psychometric evaluation of the Chinese version of the shortened version of the RFL-OA scale (SRFL-OA)

RFL (The Reasons for Living) is the reason why individuals still choose to live actively in the face of setbacks. It can buffer against suicide. Suicide among the older adults has become a major public health issue in many countries. SRFL-OA(The shortened version of the RFL-OA scale) is of great significance in identifying the reasons for living among the older adults, thus preventing suicidal ideation and reducing the risk of suicide. China lacks tools to assess the reasons for living among the older adults. The aim of this study is to translate the SRFL-OA scale into Chinese and evaluate its psychometric properties among the older adults in China.

This study included 200 older adults. Item screening was performed using the critical ratio and correlation coefficient methods. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were used for reliability analysis, and validity was assessed through content validity and exploratory factor analysis.

After rigorous translation and cross-cultural adaptation, a shortened Chinese version of the Reasons for Living - Older Adults (SRFL-OA), comprising 3 dimensions and 22 items, was developed. In terms of reliability, the correlation coefficients between individual items and the total questionnaire score ranged from 0.453 to 0.679. The overall Cronbach's α coefficient of the scale was 0.914, with subscale coefficients ranging from 0.838 to 0.886. The McDonald's ω coefficient for the total scale was 0.923, and the ω coefficients for each subscale range from 0.854 to 0.901. The test-retest reliability of the scale was 0.734, with individual subscale values of 0.729-0.841. For validity, the item-level content validity index (I-CVI) was 0.83-1.00, and the average scale-level content validity index (S-CVI) was 0.93. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a three-factor structure that explained 55.468% of the total variance.

The SRFL-OA scale has been successfully adapted for use in China and demonstrates good psychometric properties among Chinese community-dwelling old people. The scale evaluates the reasons for living among older adults from a positive psychological perspective and effectively identifies older individuals with suicidal ideation. SRFL-OA scale provides scientific reference and is a valuable tool for evaluating the reasons for living among the older population in China.