Adaptation of the Problem Areas in Diabetes-Teen Scale into Turkish and examination of its psychometric properties: a validity and reliability study.

Objective: Management of type 1 diabetes (T1DM) is quite challenging for both adolescents and their families. In this study, we aimed to translate the 14-item Problem Areas in Diabetes-Teen (PAID-T) scale, which measures variables that influence diabetes distress, to Turkish and investigate the Turkish version's reliability and validity.

Methods: One hundred and ninety-four adolescents with T1DM participated in the study. PAID-T and forms for sociodemographic and diabetes characteristics were used for data collection. The scale's content validity was checked using the Davis technique. Cronbach's α was used to analyze the scale's internal reliability and the test-retest for the scale's reliability. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was utilized to examine the factor structure. The fit of the scale was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).

Results: Of the participants, 54.6% (n=106) were girls. The content validity index values of the scale items ranged between 0.86 and 1.0. The PAID-T scores of girls and boys were similar. No significant difference was found between PAID-T scores with sociodemographic data and diabetes characteristics (p>0.05). The test-retest correlation coefficient of the scale was found to be 0.952. The three-factor (emotional burden, family and friend distress, and regimen-specific distress) model identified in EFA explained 61.8% of the common variance. Fit analysis was performed using CFA for the three-factor model, which did not show adequate fit (x2/df = 2.402, GFI = 0.822, CFI = 0.815, NFI = 0.727, NNFI = 0.772, RMSEA = 0.118). The Cronbach α value of the scale was 0.864.

Conclusion: The Turkish version of the 14-item PAID-T showed moderate validity and strong reliability. Accordingly, it can be used as a reliable measurement tool to assess diabetes stress in adolescents with T1DM.