A Cross-National Analysis of the Psychometric Properties of the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory

OBJECTIVES

Assessing late-life anxiety using an instrument with sound psychometric properties including cross-cultural invariance is essential for cross-national aging research and clinical assessment. To date, no cross-national research studies have examined the psychometric properties of the frequently used Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI) in depth.

METHOD

Using data from 3,731 older adults from 10 national samples (Australia, Brazil, Canada, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Singapore, Thailand, and United States), this study used bifactor modeling to analyze the dimensionality of the GAI. We evaluated the "fitness" of individual items based on the explained common variance for each item across all nations. In addition, a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was applied, testing for measurement invariance across the samples.

RESULTS

Across samples, the presence of a strong G factor provides support that a general factor is of primary importance, rather than subfactors. That is, the data support a primarily unidimensional representation of the GAI, still acknowledging the presence of multidimensional factors. A GAI score in one of the countries would be directly comparable to a GAI score in any of the other countries tested, perhaps with the exception of Singapore.

DISCUSSION

Although several items demonstrated relatively weak common variance with the general factor, the unidimensional structure remained strong even with these items retained. Thus, it is recommended that the GAI be administered using all items.

A Systematic Review of the Psychometric Properties of the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory

The Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI) is a widely used self-report measure of anxiety symptoms in older adults. Although much research has been conducted on the psychometric properties of the GAI, previous reviews have examined only a small proportion of studies and have not evaluated the methodological quality of this work. In view of this, we conducted a systematic review of the psychometric properties of the GAI and it’s short form (GAI-SF). Relevant studies (N = 31) were retrieved through a search of electronic databases (Pubmed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, EMBASE and Google Scholar) and a hand search. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed by two independent reviewers using the ‘‘COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement INstruments’’ (COSMIN) checklist. Based on the COSMIN checklist, internal consistency and test reliability were mostly rated as poorly assessed (63% and 72.7% of studies, respectively) and quality of studies examining structural validity was mostly fair (60% of studies). Both the GAI and GAI-SF showed adequate internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Convergent validity indices were highest with measures of generalized anxiety and lowest with instruments that include somatic symptoms. Substantial overlap with measures of depression was reported. While there is no consensus on the factorial structure of the GAI, the short version was found to be unidimensional. Our review therefore suggests that the GAI and GAI-SF have satisfactory psychometric properties while indicating that future efforts should aim to achieve a higher degree of methodological quality.

Les joueurs pathologiques en traitement sont-ils un groupe homogène? Différences selon la concomitance d’un trouble d’utilisation d’une substance

Cette étude compare les profils sociodémographiques et cliniques de joueurs pathologiques en traitement dans un centre public de réadaptation en dépendance selon qu’ils présentent ou non un trouble lié à l’utilisation d’une substance (TUS) au moment de leur entrée en traitement. Les évaluations d’admission des joueurs requérant un traitement dans un centre public de réadaptation en dépendance ont été utilisées. Les joueurs (N = 322) ont été répartis en deux groupes mutuellement exclusifs, soit le groupe Jeu sans TUS (n = 190) et le groupe Jeu avec TUS (n = 132). Il était attendu que les profils sociodémographiques des deux groupes de joueurs pathologiques différeraient et que le groupe Jeu avec TUS présenterait un profil clinique plus sévère que le groupe Jeu sans TUS. Les analyses indiquent que le groupe Jeu avec TUS présente des besoins d’intervention plus importants sur les plans professionnel, judiciaire, psychologique et relationnel, en plus de se distinguer sur le plan sociodémographique. Toutefois, le groupe Jeu sans TUS présente quant à lui des besoins d’intervention plus importants concernant les habitudes de jeux de hasard et d’argent (JHA). Les auteurs discutent des implications de ces différences dans les profils cliniques, en considérant les cibles d’intervention à prioriser.This study compared the sociodemographic and clinical profiles of pathological gamblers in treatment at a public dependence rehabilitation centre. The gamblers (N = 322) were divided into two mutually exclusive groups based on their entry assessments, which evaluated if they presented with a concurrent substance abuse disorder (SAD) at the onset of treatment. The groups were as follows, Gambling without SAD (n = 190) and Gambling with SAD (n = 132). It was expected that the sociodemographic profiles of the two groups of pathological gamblers would differ, with the Gambling with SAD group presenting a more severe clinical profile than the Gambling without SAD group. Analyses indicate that the Gambling with SAD group has a greater need for professional, legal, psychological and relational intervention, as well as differences on the sociodemographic level. However, the Gambling without SAD group has a greater need for intervention concerning their gambling and gaming habits,. The implication of these differences in the clinical profiles is discussed in relation to the intervention targets to prioritize.

Psychometric properties of the French Canadian version of the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory

BACKGROUND

The Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI) and a short form of this instrument (GAI-SF) were developed to assess the severity of anxiety symptoms in older adults in order to compensate for the lack of validated screening tools adapted to the elderly population. This study examined the psychometric properties of the French Canadian version of the GAI, in its complete (GAI-FC) and short form (GAI-FC-SF).

METHOD

A total of 331 community-dwelling seniors between 65 and 92 years old participated in this study.

RESULTS

Both the GAI-FC and the GAI-FC-SF have sound psychometric properties with, respectively, a high internal consistency (α = .94 and .83), an adequate convergent validity (r = .50 to .86 with instruments known to evaluate constructs similar to the GAI or related to anxiety), a good test-retest reliability (r = .89 and .85), in addition to a single-factor structure.

CONCLUSIONS

The results support the use of both the GAI-FC and the GAI-FC-SF. The GAI-FC-SF seems to be an interesting alternative to the GAI-FC as a screening tool when time available for assessment is limited.

New determination of the astrophysical S factor SE1 of the 12C(alpha,gamma)16O reaction

A new measurement of the beta-delayed alpha decay of 16N has been performed using a set of high efficiency ionization chambers. Sources were made by implantation of a 16N beam, yielding very clean alpha spectra down to energies as low as 400 keV. Our data are in good agreement with earlier results. For the S factor S(E1), we obtain a value of 74 +/- 21 keV b. In spite of improvements in the measurement, the error in S(E1) remains relatively large because of the correlations among the fit parameters and the uncertainties inherent to the extrapolation.

[Management of lymphedema: experience of the Cognacq-Jay Hospital]

Treatment of lymphedema includes practical advices, manual lymph drainage, bandaging, self-bandaging, elastic compression garment, skin care and physical exercises. Weight loss may be useful if obesity. Surgery is indicated in genital lymphedema more than in limb lymphedema. In 2001, in Lymphology Unit, 248 women were treated for secondary upper limb lymphedema after breast cancer. Excess of volume of lymphedema was reduced by 31.3% after a mean time of 2.1 weeks. For lower limb lymphedema (primary or secondary), 136 patients were treated with a mean reduction of excess of lymphedema by 29.8% after a mean time of 2.2 weeks. After this treatment, long term follow-up is necessary to maintain results and the motivation of the patient.

Proteolytic activity of bacteria isolated from the oral cavities of BALB/c mice toward salivary proteins

The proteolytic activities of 350 bacterial isolates from different sites (saliva, tongue, teeth, and mucosa) of the oral cavities of BALB/c mice were tested against different proteins found in saliva (immunoglobulins A, M, G, albumin, lysozyme, mucin, lactoferrin, and lactoperoxidase), some of which are considered to possess antibacterial activity. The results indicate that: (1) lysozyme, lactoferrin, and lactoperoxidase are hydrolyzed by from 46 to 70% of the indigenous flora of the oral cavities of BALB/c mice; (2) IgA and IgM appeared less sensitive to the proteolytic activities of these strains than did the other proteins tested; (3) the colonization of the oral cavity does not seem to be correlated with the proteolytic activity; and (4) the presence of specific Ig proteases is relatively scarce within this population.