Validation of a brief measure of HIV health-related anxiety among women living with HIV.
Marya T SchulteWilliam D MarelichDiana L PayneNicholas TarantinoLisa P ArmisteadDebra A MurphyPublished in: Research in nursing & health (2018)
Anxiety symptoms related to health are often present in populations coping with chronic illness, and among women living with HIV (WLWH), anxiety has been linked to a range of negative outcomes. This paper describes the validation of a four-item instrument designed to measure health-related anxiety (HRA) in WLWH by assessing the impact of thinking about HIV status and health on difficulty sleeping, lack of appetite, reduced desire to socialize, and difficulty concentrating at school or work. The scale was administered to 238 adult WLWH across three studies. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a one-factor solution; multi-group confirmatory factor invariance analyses supported the single factor model. For construct and criterion validity, correlations between the HRA scale and validated instruments measuring psychological, psychosocial, and physical distress were as predicted. Results support the validity of the HRA scale among WLWH as a brief measure of anxiety related to HIV status and health.
Keyphrases
- sleep quality
- mental health
- antiretroviral therapy
- hiv positive
- hiv infected
- hiv testing
- healthcare
- public health
- human immunodeficiency virus
- hepatitis c virus
- hiv aids
- physical activity
- men who have sex with men
- health information
- polycystic ovary syndrome
- depressive symptoms
- health promotion
- metabolic syndrome
- south africa
- pregnant women
- risk assessment
- pregnancy outcomes
- skeletal muscle
- weight loss
- young adults