Experiencing fear during the pandemic: validation of the fear of COVID-19 scale in Polish

Abstract

Background The Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) is a brief self-report measure developed at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. The scale evaluates the emotional responses to COVID-19. To date, the FCV-19S has been translated and validated in about 20 languages and has been used in many published research. The current study aimed to validate the Polish version of the FCV-19S. Method The FCV-19S was translated into Polish using forward- and back-translation. From May 15th to June 15th 2020, a total of 708 community members (Sample 1: 383 persons, 209 females, Sample 2: 325 persons, 198 females) participated in the online study. The participants were recruited using online advertisements in social media. Participation was anonymous, voluntary, and without compensation. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to test the one-factor structure of the FCV-19S. Then, measurement invariance was analyzed across samples, gender and age groups. To assess the validity of the scale, correlations between the FCV-19S and the remaining scales were computed. Results Internal consistency of the FCV-19S was good in both samples (Cronbach’s alpha 0.89 and 0.85). The CFA showed that the one-factor model fits the data well (RMSEA = 0.067, 90% CI [0.059–0.094], CFI = 0.977, TLI = 0.965, GFI = 0.986). The criteria for configural, metric, scalar and strict invariance were met for all models tested. The FCV-19S scores correlated significantly with age, subjective vulnerability to the disease, neuroticism, self-reported compliance with the pandemic measures, and three kinds of preventive behavior (i.e., social distancing, hand hygiene, and disinfecting things). Conclusion The Polish version of the FCV-19S had a unidimensional structure, good reliability, and correlated as predicted with other variables. With the FCV-19S and the obtained results, healthcare professionals, researchers, and the government can gain more valuable information about people who may be at risk for negative psychological outcomes during the pandemic or who are not implementing protective behavior. The tool can be used in hospitals to quickly screen the level of fear in patients and minimize its severe adverse consequences.

Fear of COVID-19, Anxiety and Depression in Patients with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension and Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension during the Pandemic

“…The FCV-19S is a psychometric tool created during the beginning of the SARS-COV2 pandemic to assess emotional response to the pandemic [ 15 ]. The FCV-19S may reflect depression, anxiety, stress, mental well-being, generalized anxiety disorder, psychological distress, post-traumatic disorder, and specific phobia [ 15 , 20 , 22 , 23 , 25 ]. The mean level of FCV-19S in our study patients was 18.9 ± 7.4 points (median 19 (13–24)).…”

“…The mean level of FCV-19S in our study patients was 18.9 ± 7.4 points (median 19 (13–24)). Some studies on general populations in various countries found higher or lower fear of COVID-19, with mean FCV-19S from 13.2 to 27.3 points [ 15 , 20 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ]. Comparison of the results is difficult due to the different times of assessment, different ages of the examined populations, and other varying characteristics.…”

“…The FCV-19S was measured in the general population by internet survey one year before our study, from 15 May 2020 to 15 June 2020. The mean FCV-19S in the general population was 13.16 ± 4.8 [ 25 ]. Interestingly, the level of fear of COVID-19 in PH patients is similar to the FCV-19S in other life-treating populations, namely cancer patients.…”

“…We chose FCV-19S and HADS tools to assess the mental status of PH patients for easier comparison of the obtained results because both scales are widely used in the clinics. FCV-19S is translated into various languages and validated in various countries [ 15 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ]. Both scales have been translated into the Polish language [ 26 , 27 ] and validated for the Polish population.…”

“…The FCV-19S had good internal consistency (Cronbach’s alfa was 0.89 and 0.85) [ 25 , 27 ]. It is a psychometric tool that consists of 7 items.…”