Validation of Family Values Scale in Community-dwelling Older Chinese Adults: A Large Nationally Representative Study
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BACKGROUND
Family values significantly influence people’s attitudes and practices in caring for older people, but measuring family values can be challenging. This study aims to test the reliability, validity, and factor structure of the Family Values Scale in a large, nationally representative, community-dwelling sample of older Chinese adults.
METHODS
11 418 Chinese adults aged 60 years and older (mean age: 71.5 years; 50.2% female) were recruited and completed the Family Values Scale. We conducted exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to test the validity and factor structure of the scale in this large, nationally representative dataset. Cronbach’s α and other related indices were used to measure the internal consistency.
RESULTS
After removing item 1 and item 5 from the original scale, the new 6-item scale demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α: 0.80, Guttman’s λ 6: 0.78, β coefficient: 0.75, and ω coefficient: 0.80). The EFA yielded a one-factor structure of the scale. The CFA results further confirmed the one-factor structure (CFI = 0.98; TLI = 0.96; RMSEA = 0.06 [95% CI: 0.05–0.07]) is a good fit for the dataset. The factor loadings of each item are within the expected range (>0.40).
CONCLUSION
The 6-item Family Values Scale has good reliability and validity in capturing family values among older Chinese adults. The unidimensional factor scale structure showed adequate goodness of fit and reflected contemporary Chinese family values. This new scale can be used as a validated measure of family values for future research among older Chinese populations.
