Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Department of Gerontology, School of Medicine, Qom University of medical Sciences, Qom, Iran
2 Iranian Research Center on Aging, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
3 Ph.D. of Health and Social welfare, Social welfare management Reasearch Centere, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Background: Social capital and social participation has a significant role in improving the health of the older adults. The current study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Adapted Social Capital Assessment Tool (SASCAT) in the older adults.
Methods: A total of 414 community-dwelling older people (aged 60 years or older) in Aran and Bidgol city selected through multistage cluster sampling method. Construct validity evaluated by exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Reliability of the tool was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha and interclass correlation coefficient. The Pearson correlation coefficient test was used to evaluate the convergent validity of the instrument between WHO-5 and SASCAT. SPSS24 and AMOS24 software were used for statistical analysis.
Results: The three factors of received social support, social participation, and social trust were extracted from exploratory factor analysis, which explained 66.33% of the total variance. The CFA revealed that the SASCAT structure model was a validated model (CMIN/DF=2.36, GFI=0.957, CFI=0.931, RMSEA=0.081). There was a significant positive relationship between social capital and psychological wellbeing (r=0.28, p< 0.01), according to the results of the convergent validity evaluation. Moreover, the Persian version of social capital tool had acceptable internal consistency and test-retest reliability.
Conclusions: The 8-item social capital tool is a valid and reliable measurement tool that can be used in future studies to examine the status of this concept among Iranian older people.
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