Validating the Psychometric Characteristics of the Perinatal Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Questionnaire (PPQ) in a Chinese Context.

BACKGROUND

Perinatal posttraumatic stress disorder (PPTSD) is a common stress-induced mental disorder worldwide. The Perinatal Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Questionnaire (PPQ) is an excellent questionnaire that measures the symptoms of PPTSD, but has not been translated into Chinese yet.

OBJECTIVES

The aims of this study were to develop a translated Chinese version of the (PPQ) and validate the psychometric characteristics of the PPQ in a Chinese context.

METHODS

After translation, back-translation, and expert discussion, 280 mothers at 1 to 18months postpartum filled out the questionnaires through the Internet. Then the reliability and validity of the translated questionnaire were tested.

RESULTS

The Chinese version of PPQ (PPQ-C) was composed of 14 items. Cronbach's α coefficient was 0.84, test-retest reliability was 0.88, and the content validity was 0.99. Exploratory factor analysis extracted three factors (representing "arousal", "avoidance" and "intrusion") accounted for 53.30% of the variance. The established 3 factors model was well fitted with the collected data (χ=76.40, p<0.05).

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

The PPQ-C is a short, reliable, and valid instrument that measures the symptoms of PPTSD, and it is recommend for clinical screening.

IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH

Further research could involve diverse participants, as well as better adapt the PPQ-C to Chinese culture.