University at Buffalo, School of Nursing, 3435 Main St. University at Buffalo, Wende Hall, Buffalo, NY, 14214-8013, USA.
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Elm and Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY, 14263, USA.
BMC Public Health. 2022 Jun 7;22(1):1135. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-13510-4.
Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are relatively new tobacco products that are attracting public attention due to their unique features, especially their many flavor options and their potential as an alternative to cigarettes. However, uncertainties remain regarding the determinants and consequences of e-cigarette use because current research on e-cigarettes is made more difficult due to the lack of psychometrically sound instruments that measure e-cigarette related constructs. This systematic review therefore seeks to identify the instruments in the field that are designed to assess various aspects of e-cigarette use or its related constructs and analyze the evidence presented regarding the psychometric properties of the identified instruments.
This systematic review utilized six search engines: PubMed, Medline, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and EMBASE, to identify articles published in the peer-reviewed journals from inception to February 2022 that contained development or validation processes for these instruments.
Eighteen articles describing the development or validation of 22 unique instruments were identified. Beliefs, perceptions, motives, e-cigarette use, and dependence, were the most commonly assessed e-cigarette related constructs. The included studies reported either construct or criterion validity, with 14 studies reporting both. Most studies did not report the content validity; for reliability, most reported internal consistencies using Cronbach's alpha, with 15 instruments reporting Cronbach's alpha > 0.70 for the scale or its subscales.
Twenty-two instruments with a reported development or validation process to measure e-cigarette related constructs are currently available for practitioners and researchers. This review provides a guide for practitioners and researchers seeking to identify the most appropriate existing instruments on e-cigarette use based on the constructs examined, target population, psychometric properties, and instrument length. The gaps identified in the existing e-cigarette related instruments indicate that future studies should seek to extend the validity of the instruments for diverse populations, including adolescents. Instruments that explore additional aspects of e-cigarette use and e-cigarette related constructs to help build a strong theoretical background and expand our current understanding of e-cigarette use and its related constructs, should also be developed.
电子烟是一种相对较新的烟草产品，因其独特的特点，尤其是其多种口味选择和作为香烟替代品的潜力，引起了公众的关注。然而，由于目前对电子烟的研究由于缺乏测量电子烟相关结构的心理测量学上健全的工具而变得更加困难，因此电子烟使用的决定因素和后果仍存在不确定性。因此，本系统评价旨在确定该领域旨在评估电子烟使用或其相关结构的各个方面的工具，并分析关于确定工具的心理测量特性提出的证据。
本系统评价利用了六个搜索引擎：PubMed、Medline、CINAHL、PsycINFO、Web of Science 和 EMBASE，以确定从成立到 2022 年 2 月发表在同行评议期刊上的包含这些工具的开发或验证过程的文章。
确定了 18 篇描述这些工具的开发或验证的文章，共涉及 22 个独特的工具。信念、认知、动机、电子烟使用和依赖是最常评估的电子烟相关结构。纳入的研究报告了构念或效标效度，其中 14 项研究报告了两者。大多数研究未报告内容效度；对于可靠性，大多数研究使用 Cronbach's alpha 报告内部一致性，其中 15 个工具报告了量表或其分量表的 Cronbach's alpha > 0.70。
目前有 22 个工具经过报告的开发或验证过程，可用于测量电子烟相关结构。本综述为寻求根据所检查的结构、目标人群、心理测量特性和工具长度识别电子烟使用的最适当现有工具的从业者和研究人员提供了指南。现有电子烟相关工具中存在的差距表明，未来的研究应寻求扩大这些工具在不同人群（包括青少年）中的有效性。还应开发探索电子烟使用和电子烟相关结构的其他方面的工具，以帮助建立坚实的理论背景并扩大我们对电子烟使用及其相关结构的现有理解。
