Psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the resilience scale for older adults.

Objectives: A significant gap currently exists in the availability of reliable and scientifically rigorous measures for evaluating resilience among older Arabic-speaking populations. The primary objective of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of an Arabic adaptation of the 15-item Resilience Scale of Older Adults (RSOA) in a sample of Arabic-speaking Egyptian older adults.

Method: Using a cross-sectional design and a convenience sample of 539 Egyptian older adults, with 60.7% aged between 65 and 75 years (50.3% females), participants completed an online Google form-based anonymous questionnaire, including sociodemographic information, the RSOA, and the 10-item CD-RISC. To ensure accurate translation, the forward-backward translation method was employed. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and gender invariance in the RSOA were analyzed. McDonald's ω and Cronbach's α were calculated to assess internal consistency.

Results: The results demonstrate that the Arabic RSOA and its subscales exhibit high internal consistency, with McDonald's ω and Cronbach's α values ranging from 0.83 to 0.93. CFA analysis revealed that the four-factor model fit of RSOA was acceptable. Measurement invariance was supported across genders. Furthermore, both genders exhibited no significant differences in all four RSOA dimensions. Convergent validity was supported by demonstrating that the four RSOA sub-scores and total scores correlated positively and significantly with the 10-item CD-RISC.

Conclusion: While further cross-cultural validation involving other Arab countries and communities is necessary, this study suggests that the Arabic RSOA may be used to measure resilience among broader Arabic-speaking older adults in clinical and research contexts.