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Validation of a Chinese Version of the Geriatric Anxiety Scale Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Mainland China

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Abstract

The Geriatric Anxiety Scale (GAS) was developed as an international screening instrument for anxiety in older adults. The aims of the present study were to translate the GAS into Chinese and to subsequently evaluate the preliminary psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the GAS (GAS-C) among community-dwelling Chinese older adults. The translation of the GAS into Chinese was developed through a translation and back translation process. A sample of 206 community-dwelling older adults (51.9 % men, Mean age = 70.70 years, SD = 8.15 years) completed the GAS-C, the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to examine the factor structure of the GAS-C. Internal consistency and convergent validity were used to evaluate the psychometric properties of the translated measure. The factor analyses were in support of a unidimensional factor model of the GAS-C in this Chinese sample, and the item-total correlations for all 25 items ranged from 0.40 to 0.83. The internal consistency for the GAS-C total score was excellent (α = 0.92). The GAS-C total score were significantly and strongly correlated with the BAI (r = 0.86), the GDS (r = 0.78) and the PSQI (r = 0.63), which indicated good convergent validity of the GAS-C. The GAS-C appears to be a reliable and valid screening instrument to assess anxiety symptoms among community-dwelling older adults in mainland China.

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Acknowledgments

We thank all participants and the cooperating departments, especially Xiangya entertainment center for aged people and the Staff Activity Center of Xiangya Hospital. This study was supported by grants from the Innovation-seeking Program for Doctoral Students of Central South University (NO 2013zzts078).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Xiangya Nursing School of Central South University, Tongzipo Road No172, Changsha, Hunan, 410013, People’s Republic of China

    Xiao-Ling Lin & Si-Yuan Tang

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Xiamen Xianyue Hospital, Xiamen, Fujian, People’s Republic of China

    Da-Li Lu

  3. Saarland University, Saarbruecken, Germany

    Juliana Gottschling

  4. Department of Psychology, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO, 80918, USA

    Daniel L. Segal

Authors
  1. Xiao-Ling Lin
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  2. Da-Li Lu
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  3. Juliana Gottschling
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  4. Daniel L. Segal
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  5. Si-Yuan Tang
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Correspondence to Daniel L. Segal or Si-Yuan Tang.

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Appendix A: Chinese Version of the GAS (GAS-C)

Appendix A: Chinese Version of the GAS (GAS-C)

老年焦虑量表 (Geriatric Anxiety Scale----Chinese Version)

顺序

内容

几乎没有0

有时1

经常2

几乎总是如此3

1

我感到心跳加速或心悸

    

2

我感到呼吸急促

    

3

我感到胃部不适

    

4

我感到一切都是不真实的或好像已经失去自我

    

5

我感觉对自己失去了控制

    

6

我害怕别人对我的评价

    

7

我害怕被羞辱或者尴尬

    

8

我难以入睡

    

9

我难以保持熟睡状态或者容易惊醒

    

10

我是急躁的

    

11

我会突然暴怒

    

12

我难以集中注意力

    

13

我容易受到惊吓或感到不安

    

14

我对之前通常感兴趣的事情失去了兴趣

    

15

我自觉同别人分离或被孤立

    

16

我感到恍惚或茫然

    

17

我难以安静地待着

    

18

我会担心太多或过分担心

    

19

我会不由自主地担心和焦虑

    

20

我感到焦躁不安的,紧张的或烦躁不安的

    

21

我感到疲惫

    

22

我的肌肉是紧绷的

    

23

我感到背痛、颈痛或肌肉抽筋

    

24

我好像没有办法控制自己的生活

    

25

我感觉有一些可怕的事情将会在我身上发生

    

26

我担心我的经济情况

    

27

我担心我的健康情况

    

28

我担心我的小孩

    

29

我害怕死亡

    

30

我害怕自己成为家庭和孩子的负担

    

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Lin, XL., Lu, DL., Gottschling, J. et al. Validation of a Chinese Version of the Geriatric Anxiety Scale Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Mainland China. J Cross Cult Gerontol 32, 57–70 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10823-016-9302-4

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