Development of Falling Self-Efficacy Scale for Elderly People : the Reliability and Validity

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This paper outlines the development of the falling self-efficacy (FSE) scale for elderly people. From interviews with 24 elderly people who lived in a home for the aged, 27 items were selected as indicators of fall events or fall related situations during daily life activities in Study 1. These items were applied to 151 elderly people who lived in community area and nursing homes to develop the scale in Study 2. Finally, the 15-items FSE scale was developed after checking the distribution for each item. The scale showed high reliability by the internal consistency (α =.96) and the test-retest procedure (γ=.74) in Study 3. In Study 4, the validity was examined by finding the relationships between the FSE score and some movement variables for 10 m walking and stepping-over the 30 cm obstacle. The FSE score was significantly correlated to the stridelength and velocity during walking, as well as the stride distance and velocity in stepping-over. Fallers during last year also had a significantly smaller FSE score compared to non-fallers. In addition, persons who had high fear of falling showed a significantly smaller FSE score. For future research, the scale should be used to screen the elderly persons who have a severe fear of falling and lead to restricting physical activity and to clarify the effects of the fall prevention program. Finally, it was discussed that cognitive-behavioral approach plays an important role for effective fall-prevention programs for elderly people.