Validation of a modified Chinese-language version of the Davos Assessment of Cognitive Biases Scale (MCL-DACOBS) in a sample of Chinese patients with schizophrenia.

INTRODUCTION

The Davos Assessment of Cognitive Biases Scale (DACOBS) is widely used to assess cognitive biases in patients who have schizophrenia. However, the lack of a modified Chinese-language version of the DACOBS (MCL-DACOBS) precludes Chinese schizophrenic patients from treatment aimed at normalizing cognitive biases, impacting their prognosis. Here, we aimed to produce a DACOBS for China and test the validity and reliability of the resultant MCL-DACOBS.

METHODS

Eighteen researchers collaborated to develop the MCL-DACOBS: A total of 15 researchers modified and translated the English version of the DACOBS, 1 native-English-speaking researcher back-translated the scale, and 2 Chinese sinologists localized and optimized the language of the MCL-DACOBS. Forty-two volunteers checked the scale items' comprehensibility, and the two sinologists performed further localization and optimization based on their feedback. The final version of the MCL-DACOBS used in this study was thus derived from the harmonized English-language version of the scale. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) were used to examine the best latent structure of the MCL-DACOBS. Cronbach's α and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used to check the reliability. The discriminative ability of the MCL-DACOBS was assessed according to the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve.

RESULTS

The CFA showed that all items loaded onto factors with loadings >0.400. A two-factor structure showed a good model fit (root mean square error of approximation = .018, Tucker-Lewis index = .978, comparative fit index = .984). Promax rotation demonstrated that each item had a high factor load (0.432-0.774). Cronbach's α coefficient and ICC for the MCL-DOCABS were .965 and .957, respectively, indicating that the scale has ideal reliability.

CONCLUSION

The MCL-DACOBS has good validity and good reliability, and its psychometric properties indicate that it is a valid tool for measuring cognitive biases in Chinese patients with schizophrenia.