A Validity and Reliability Study of the Turkish Version of the Mothers Autonomy in Decision Making Scale

Abstract

Objective: The focus of the study is women's experiences of autonomy while making decisions about their care during pregnancy, labour and birth. The aim of this study is to adapt the Mothers Autonomy in Decision Making Scale (MADM), developed by Vedam et al. in 2017, into Turkish health care culture. Methods: The survey was conducted May 15th to August 15th 2019. 344 women participated in the study and 286 women answered the questionnaire in total. The data were evaluated using the SPSS package software. Findings related to construct validity of the scale were made using exploratory factor analysis method. Results: Reliability of the Turkish form of the scale was performed with Cronbach’s Alfa and the internal consistency value of the scale was found to be 0.91. MADM scores were found to be highest for midwives (33.28±10.10) and lowest for family physicians (23.89±11.44). More than half of the midwives who have been cared for have a high autonomy score on the scale of MADM (%54.4). Conclusion: MADM scale was found to be valid and reliable in Turkey to assess decision-making experiences during maternity care.