Psychometric evaluation of the Swedish version of the Hypoglycaemia Fear Survey.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the Hypoglycaemia Fear Survey (Swe-HFS) for use among Swedish-speaking patients with type 1 diabetes.

METHODS

The HFS was translated using the forward-backward translation method and was thereafter answered by 325 type 1 patients. The psychometric properties were investigated using exploratory factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha, content and convergent validity.

RESULTS

The factor analysis showed that a three-factor solution was reasonable with the subscales Behaviour/Avoidance (10 items), Worry (6 items) and Aloneness (4 items). Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the total score was 0.85. The result also supports the instrument's content validity and convergent validity.

CONCLUSION

The Swedish version of the HFS appears to be a reliable and valid instrument for measuring fear of hypoglycaemia (FoH) in type 1 patients.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The results from this study suggest that the Swe-HFS, an instrument that is brief and easy to administer, may be valuable in clinically assessing FoH among patients with type 1 diabetes.