Development of a reliable and valid Chinese version of the Diabetes Empowerment Scale

Objective: To translate the Diabetes Empowerment Scale (DES) into Chinese and establish its psychometric properties among Hong Kong Chinese people. Research Design and Methods: A two-stage study design, incorporating qualitative and quantitative components, determined the cultural equivalency and content validity of the translated scale and established the psychometric properties of the Chinese DES (C-DES) in 207 patients. Results: Psychometric analysis supported the reliability and validity of the 20-item Chinese DES (C-DES-20) and five subscales: overcoming barriers ( = 0.89), determining suitable methods ( = 0.79), achieving goals ( = 0.78), obtaining support ( = 0.78), and coping ( = 0.76). The test-retest reliability of the intraclass correlations was satisfactory when a subsample of 20 patients was tested after a 2-week interval. There was criterion validity between the global scale and metabolic control (HbA1c) of respondents with type 2 diabetes (P = 0.03). Conclusions: The C-DES-20 is a reliable and valid outcome measure for patient education and psychosocial interventions among Hong Kong Chinese people with diabetes