Development and psychometric validation of the bullying experiences of the elderly scale in geriatric care

Bullying is a common issue that undermines older adults' health and well-being yet often goes unnoticed. Despite its impact, assessment tools specifically designed to identify bullying against this population are limited.

This study aimed to develop the Bullying Experiences of the Elderly (BEE) scale and evaluate its psychometric properties among older adults.

The BEE scale was theoretically grounded in Olweus's bullying framework, stereotype embodiment theory, and social-ecological theory. A three-phase cross-sectional design was used, including item generation based on theoretical foundations, refinement through content and face validity review, and evaluation of construct validity in a larger survey sample. A sample of 922 community-dwelling older adults was recruited from commonly frequented or residential locations in Taiwan. Recruitment was conducted through door-to-door visits and face-to-face interactions. Factor analysis was performed for data analysis.

The finalized BEE scale includes 18 items and a four-factor structure: ageism-related bullying, sexual bullying, dignity violation, and social bullying. The scale demonstrated strong content validity and good internal consistency, with Cronbach's α coefficients exceeding.80. The indices of confirmatory factor analysis supported the internal measurement structure of the four-factor model, with composite reliability values exceeding.60 and the square roots of the average variance extracted for each factor being greater than the inter-factor correlations.

The BEE scale is a reliable instrument for assessing bullying experiences among older adults, offering valuable support for improving geriatric care. Its routine application may inform the development of targeted interventions; however, further research is required to validate the scale across different contexts.