Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Clinical Psychology, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, UAE.
Wolfson College, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.
PLoS One. 2021 Nov 24;16(11):e0260355. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260355. eCollection 2021.
Literature reports that fear and anxiety related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic may be a significant factor in promoting adherence to health-protective behaviours. This study aimed to validate an Arabic version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS). Participants aged 18 to 58 years of age were recruited from a university population (students and staff) as well as via social media from 22 June to 18 July 2020 when the United Arab Emirates was under a partial government-instituted lockdown. They completed Arabic versions of the CAS and the Fear of COVID-19 Scale. A confirmatory factor analysis produced a unidimensional structure and all items satisfactorily loaded onto this single factor (i.e., the physiological symptoms of fear and anxiety related to coronavirus). The Arabic CAS was internally consistent and concurrently valid. These preliminary findings suggest that the Arabic CAS is a valid and reliable instrument to employ in the assessment of dysfunctional anxiety related to coronavirus. The availability of this validated measure will enable the further conduct of a variety of mental health studies in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. It also holds clinical utility as a potential screening measure for those afflicted by anxiety symptomology during the pandemic.
文献报道，与冠状病毒（COVID-19）大流行相关的恐惧和焦虑可能是促进人们遵守健康保护行为的一个重要因素。本研究旨在验证冠状病毒焦虑量表（CAS）的阿拉伯语版本。参与者年龄在 18 至 58 岁之间，他们是从一所大学的人群（学生和教职员工）中招募的，同时也通过社交媒体从 2020 年 6 月 22 日至 7 月 18 日招募的，当时阿拉伯联合酋长国处于政府部分实施封锁的状态。他们完成了阿拉伯语版的 CAS 和恐惧 COVID-19 量表。验证性因素分析产生了一个单维结构，所有项目都令人满意地加载到这个单一因素上（即与冠状病毒相关的恐惧的生理症状）。阿拉伯语 CAS 具有内部一致性和同时效度。这些初步发现表明，阿拉伯语 CAS 是评估与冠状病毒相关的功能失调性焦虑的有效和可靠工具。该经过验证的测量方法的可用性将使人们能够进一步开展与 COVID-19 大流行相关的各种心理健康研究。它还具有临床实用性，可作为大流行期间焦虑症状患者的潜在筛查措施。
