INTRODUCTION: The Chinese Health Questionnaire (CHQ-12) is a research instrument, modeled after the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), aimed at assessing in a culturally appropriate way the psychological distress in Chinese-speaking populations. AIMS: The authors present the adaptation of a bilingual Chinese/Italian version of CHQ-12 suitable for Chinese population in Italy. METHODS: CHQ-12 text was first converted in simplified Chinese characters and adapted to the language spoken by Chinese living in Italy, then, following a "forward-backward" translation procedure an Italian version was obtained. Content equivalence was assessed by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient between the Italian and Chinese version. The reliability was assessed by calculating test-retest stability and internal consistency. Validity was assessed using convergent validity. RESULTS: The content equivalence was high (intraclass correlation 0.99) and reliability analysis showed satisfactory results (Cronbach alpha for internal consistency 0.84, intraclass correlation for test-retest stability 0.87, Spearman rho for convergent validity 0.63). CONCLUSIONS: The bilingual Chinese/Italian version of CHQ-12 shows good reliability and validity and can be considered a suitable instrument for cross-cultural research on psychological distress in Chinese living in Italy.
INTRODUCTION: The Chinese Health Questionnaire (CHQ-12) is a research instrument, modeled after the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), aimed at assessing in a culturally appropriate way the psychological distress in Chinese-speaking populations. AIMS: The authors present the adaptation of a bilingual Chinese/Italian version of CHQ-12 suitable for Chinese population in Italy. METHODS: CHQ-12 text was first converted in simplified Chinese characters and adapted to the language spoken by Chinese living in Italy, then, following a "forward-backward" translation procedure an Italian version was obtained. Content equivalence was assessed by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient between the Italian and Chinese version. The reliability was assessed by calculating test-retest stability and internal consistency. Validity was assessed using convergent validity. RESULTS: The content equivalence was high (intraclass correlation 0.99) and reliability analysis showed satisfactory results (Cronbach alpha for internal consistency 0.84, intraclass correlation for test-retest stability 0.87, Spearman rho for convergent validity 0.63). CONCLUSIONS: The bilingual Chinese/Italian version of CHQ-12 shows good reliability and validity and can be considered a suitable instrument for cross-cultural research on psychological distress in Chinese living in Italy.