Content Validity and Test-Retest Reliability Study of Oral Cancer Awareness Questionnaire

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Oral Health
• Questionnaire Development

Background:

• Assessing oral cancer awareness (OCA) is crucial for community health initiatives.
• Validated questionnaires are essential tools for accurate OCA assessment.
• This study focused on validating a targeted OCA questionnaire for the Far North Queensland population.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate a targeted oral cancer awareness questionnaire for adults in Far North Queensland.
• To assess the content validity and test-retest reliability of the OCA questionnaire.
• To establish a reliable tool for future OCA research in the region.

Main Methods:

• The study involved a two-stage validation process in Far North Queensland.
• Stage one assessed content validity with clinical experts.
• Stage two evaluated test-retest reliability among 30 dental patients using Kappa tests.

Main Results:

• The questionnaire achieved an overall content validity index of 88%.
• 30 out of 38 items demonstrated an item content validity index of 1.
• High reliability (Kappa values ranging from 0.91 to 1) was observed for questions on tobacco and alcohol risk factors.

Conclusions:

• The oral cancer awareness questionnaire exhibits acceptable content validity and test-retest reliability.
• The validated questionnaire is suitable for investigating OCA in adults in Far North Queensland.
• This tool can support public health efforts to improve oral cancer awareness.