The life closure scale: additional psychometric testing of a tool to measure psychological adaptation in death and dying.

The purpose of this study was to conduct additional psychometric testing on an instrument designed to measure psychological adaptation in end-of-life populations across a wide spectrum of terminal illnesses. A sample of 20 participants completed initial testing of the Life Closure Scale (LCS); however, its usefulness was limited by the small sample size. A larger sample of 113 home hospice individuals who met established criteria and who gave informed consent completed the 27-item LCS for additional psychometric testing. Cronbach's alphas and correlation coefficients were computed, and factor analysis was conducted to establish internal consistency reliability, theoretical clarity, and criterion-related validity. The number of scale items was reduced to 20, with a total alpha of.87. Cronbach's alphas for the two subscales were.80 (self-reconciled) and.82 (self-restructuring). Item-total correlations for the subscales ranged from a low of.37 to a high of.68, with confirmatory factor analysis yielding two loadings. These findings lend credence to the usefulness of the LCS in measuring psychological adaptation in dying persons.