A psychometric study of validation and cross-cultural adaptation of the Holden Communication Scale for elderly with dementia in care homes

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to validate and adapt the Arabic version of Holden Communication Scale (HCS) for assessing communication skills among old people with dementia in care home.

Design/methodology/approach

A study involving 210 elderly residents from Jordanian care homes was conducted, where they completed the Arabic version of the HCS. Internal consistency and factor analysis techniques were precisely used to assess the scale's reliability. Additionally, cognitive function evaluation used the Arabic iteration of the Saint Louis University Mental Status (SLUMS) questionnaire, while communication skills were comprehensively appraised using the HCS.

Findings

The Arabic HCS has strong content validity, with a one-component structure accounting for 60% of the variation and a three-factor structure accounting for 77.2% of the variance. The original three-subgroup structure of the scale was recreated, and internal consistency varied from 0.85 to 0.87, indicating good reliability.

Originality/value

This study aimed to assess the reliability and validity of the Arabic version of the HCS among old people with dementia residing in care homes. The authors conducted examination of its psychometric properties within this unique population.

Citation

Alkhawaldeh, A., Abdalrahim, A., Saleh, M., Ayed, A., Ababneh, A.N.A.A., Rababa, M., Dalky, A., Al-Amer, R., Al-Rawashdeh, S., Al Omari, O., ALBashtawy, M., Oweidat, I., Khatatbeh, H. and ALBashtawy, Z. (2024), "A psychometric study of validation and cross-cultural adaptation of the Holden Communication Scale for elderly with dementia in care homes", Working with Older People, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/WWOP-12-2023-0057