Psychometric properties of the Czech version of the Stigma Scale of Epilepsy

Abstract

Although significant attention has been devoted to analyzing stigma associated with epilepsy, there is still a significant lack of valid and reliable instruments. We aimed to validate the 23-item Czech version of the Stigma Scale of Epilepsy (SSE; originally developed in Brazil), which has been used to evaluate epilepsy-related stigma in the general population. Verification of the SSE questionnaire was carried out in a group of 207 students aged 15–18 years of whom none had epilepsy. These students completed the SSE twice in a period of 3–6 months as part of standard test-retest evaluation practice. The instrument exhibits good psychometric properties including internal consistency higher than in the original version (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.856 here compared with 0.81 reported in Brazil) and acceptable test-retest reliability. Using exploratory factor analysis (not provided for the original version), four factors were identified and corresponding subscales were described and interpreted. Two items did not fit into the structure and were eliminated. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to propose and verify the hierarchical 4-factor structure of the Czech version of SSE confirming the existence of a common factor corresponding to stigma. The results showed that the Czech version of SSE has good psychometric properties and can be used in further research and clinical practice.

Validation of the Chinese Version of the Stigma Scale of Epilepsy

“…Later, the Czech version was studied by Dana Brabcova et al which extracted four-factor structure of SSE. The factor 1 and factor 3 were associated with responses of PWEs to epilepsy in their personal life and the effect of epilepsy on their study and work, whereas the factor 2 and factor 4 were associated with the emotional reaction of public to epilepsy, and their emotional perspective about PWEs (31). The Chinese version of SSE structure was a little different from others, we extracted a 6-factor structure of SSE by using the EFA.…”

“…In fact, the items 1 and 13 were also excluded in the recently validated Zambian and Czech version of the scale. They excluded items 1 and item 13 for their low factor load (31,40). We further validated the structural validity, convergent validity, and discriminant validity of the Chinese version of SSE.…”

“…The Epilepsy Stigma Scale (EES) and the Kilifi Stigma Scale of Epilepsy (KSSE) are the commonly used scales for evaluating self-stigma of PWEs (22,23). From the perspective of people without epilepsy, the Stigma Scale of Epilepsy (SSE), developed by Brazilian researchers, has been widely applied all over the world, such as Zambia, the Czech Republic, Italy, India, and Korea (24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31). Some studies used "Public Attitudes Toward Epilepsy" scale (PATE) to evaluate the epilepsy-associated knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among the public (32,33).…”

Assessment of stigmatization in people with epilepsy

“…Lie tu vo je 2019 m. ðis skai èius bu vo 20 158, tai yra 7,21 atve jo 1000 gy ven to jø [7]. Pas ta rai siais me tais pa skelb ta bent ke lio li ka ap klau sø, at lik tø skir tin go se vals ty bë se epilep si jos stig mos te ma, re zul ta tø [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26]. Ta èiau re zul ta tø pa ly gi ni mà sun ki na tai, kad ty ri muo se nau do ja mi skir tin gi klau si my nai.…”