The Persian Version of the Social Participation Questionnaire: Translation, Cross-Cultural Adaptation, and...

Social participation is recognized as an important determinant of public health and has been associated with cognitive function, quality of life, well-being, and reduced mortality. This study aimed to translate, culturally adapt, and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Social Participation Questionnaire (SPQ-P).

This cross-sectional psychometric validation study was conducted from February to June 2024 in Babol, Iran. The SPQ was translated and culturally adapted into Persian following standard procedures. Categorical Principal Component Analysis (CATPCA) was used to assess construct validity, while internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach's alpha coefficients.

A total of 500 participants with a mean age of 31.34 ± 6.66 years were included. CATPCA identified a two-component structure explaining 68.4% of the total variance (95% CI: 62.1-68.5%). The first component (42.1% of the variance) demonstrated strong loadings (> 0.70) for Q2, Q3, Q8, and Q9, representing General Social Engagement. The second component (23.2% of the variance) showed high loadings for Q4, Q5, and Q10, representing Context-Specific Participation. Cluster analysis identified three distinct participation profiles. Internal consistency was acceptable for both components (Cronbach's α = 0.76 [95% CI: 0.72-0.80] and 0.68 [95% CI: 0.63-0.73], respectively, and discriminant validity was supported by low cross-loadings (< 0.30).

The SPQ-P demonstrated acceptable validity and reliability for assessing social participation among Persian-speaking populations. The structure of the identified components confirms the multidimensional nature of social participation, especially in the two dimensions of "general social participation" and "context-dependent participation". In addition, cluster analysis revealed distinct participation profiles, including highly engaged, context-specialized, and minimally involved groups, highlighting the questionnaire's ability to discriminate between different patterns of social participation. These findings support the applicability of the SPQ-P as a useful instrument for public health research and population-based assessments.