Tamil version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale

Abstract

Background: The seven-item Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) assesses severity of fear of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus). The present study translated the scale into Tamil and tested its psychometric properties so that the scale can be used in Tamil-speaking populations. Methods: The FCV-19S was translated into Tamil following a forward-backward translation procedure. Using an online-based survey, 95 participants completed the Tamil version of the FCV-19S alongside questions about demographic information. Psychometric properties were examined using Partial-Credit Rasch analysis, which was suitable for analyzing a questionnaire of this length with the present sample size. Results: The data fit for the Rasch model was confirmed without the need for any adjustments. Item means were comparable to those reported in other studies, with some evidence of clustering of items, although not sufficient to challenge the unidimensionality of the scale. Reliability was very high (α= 0.93), and there was no evidence of differential item functioning by age, sex, or education.Conclusion: The Tamil version of the FCV-19S has a unidimensional structure with robust psychometric properties. It can thus be used in research assessing the psychological impact of COVID-19 among Tamil-speaking populations. Further studies with larger samples are required to provide population reference values.

Impact on Mental Health of students due to restriction caused by COVID-19 pandemic: Cross-sectional study

“…Routine reversal creates insecurity and uncertainty while physical distancing, weakens the physical network of individuals and triggers anxiety reactions (Tsipropoulou et al 2020). A recent study showed that feelings of anxiety and depressive symptoms, distress and sleep problems were typical signs of the COVID-19 pandemic (Bharatharaj et al 2020). One of several important reasons that during the pandemic could mean increased anxiety and stress is the threat of COVID-19 and, more specifically, the fear of becoming infected or infecting precious persons (Tzur Bitan et al 2020).…”

“…A recent study showed that feelings of anxiety and depressive symptoms, distress and sleep problems were typical signs of the COVID-19 pandemic (3). One of several important reasons for increased anxiety and depression is the threat of COVID-19 and, more specifically, the fear of becoming infected (4).…”

Fear of COVID-19 in Romania: Validation of the Romanian Version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale Using Graded Response Model Analysis

“…Specialists have recently developed a 7-item unidimensional scale that assesses fear of COVID-19 (Ahorsu et al 2020). Various studies have confirmed the validity of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale in different cultures (Alyami et al 2020;Bharatharaj et al 2020;Doshi et al 2020;Mahamid et al 2020;Perz et al 2020;Satici et al 2020a;Soraci et al 2020;Winter et al 2020). However, just because such an instrument has been validated in many cultures does not mean that it can be translated and used elsewhere; it is necessary to ensure that the concept and measurement of fear of COVID-19 makes sense in a given culture.…”

Measuring Concern over Coronavirus in an Iranian non-clinical sample using the Coronavirus Disease Concern Scale (COVID-19CS)

“…The FCV-19S has Arabic, Bangla, Chinese, English, Ethiopian Amharic, French, Greek, Hebrew, Indian, Italian, Japanese, Malay, Russian, Spanish, Tamil, and Urdu versions. Cronbach's alpha for the were between .80 to .89 [7,12,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36].…”