Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of the Fear of Falling Avoidance Behavior Questionnaire in Turkish community-dwelling older adults.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to translate and adapt the Fear of Falling Avoidance Behavior Questionnaire (FFABQ) for Turkish culture and to evaluate the psychometric properties of FFABQ-Turkish in community-dwelling older adults.

METHODS

Eighty community-dwelling older adults (41 females) were assessed using the FFABQ-Turkish, Activities-specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC). Fall history and severity of fear of falling (FoF) were recorded. Forty-two participants were reassessed one week apart for test-retest reliability. Internal consistency, test-retest reliability, sensitivity to change, convergent validity, construct validity, floor and ceiling effect, and scale discrimination of FFABQ-Turkish were investigated.

RESULTS

FFABQ-Turkish has high internal consistency and good test-retest reliability. Overall scores for FFABQ-Turkish were high in females, older individuals ≥ 75 years, and fallers. Minimal detectable change with 95% confidence was 4.51 points. There were strong and moderate correlations between FFABQ-Turkish and ABC, FoF, and the number of falls. Factor analysis demonstrated a two-factor structure. No floor and ceiling effect was found. FFABQ-Turkish could discriminate individuals without avoidance behavior from those with severe avoidance behavior.

CONCLUSIONS

FFABQ-Turkish is a valid and reliable measure to assess the activity and participation restriction due to FoF, and could be used to quantify avoidance behavior in Turkish community-dwelling older adults. Implication for rehabilitationThe Turkish version of the Fear of Falling Avoidance Behavior Questionnaire (FFABQ) is a valid and reliable outcome measure for community-dwelling older adults.Fear of Falling Avoidance Behavior Questionnaire in Turkish is recommended for assessment of activity limitation and participation restrictions due to fear of falling in clinical and research settings.