Psychometric properties of the new Persian version of the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI-PV) and its short form (GAI -PV-SF)

Abstract

Background The aim of this research was to analyze the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI-PV) and its short form (GAI-PV-SF) in a sample of older adults in Iran.Methods In this cross-sectional study, a sample of 150 community-dwelling and a psychogeriatric sample of 48 adults older than 60 years completed the GAI-PV and GAI-PV-SF, the anxiety sub-scale of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-I).Results Both the GAI-PV and GAI-PV-SF exhibited excellent internal consistency and desirable concurrent validity against GHQ-28 and GDS-15. The optimal cutpoint score to detect current generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) was 10/11 and 13/14 for GAI-PV in the community-dwelling and psychogeriatric samples, respectively, and 3/4 for GAI-PV-SF in both study samples. A good test-retest reliability and a single-factor structure were also demonstrated.Conclusion Sound psychometric properties of the GAI-PV in both subsamples suggest that the instrument could be used successfully as an accurate screening instrument in the elderly Iranian population.