Localization and Psychometrics of the "Good/Bad Touch Questionnaire (GBT)" in Preschool Children: Persian Version.

Abstract

Childhood, often associated with various forms of harassment, requires a tool to assess children's ability to recognize abuse. This study was conducted with the aim of localizing and evaluating the psychometrics of the Good/Bad Touch Questionnaire (GBT) in preschool children. This study conducted as a cross-sectional design, utilizing the multi-stage sampling method to select 82 preschool children from Ardabil city in the year 2023. Data collection was conducted using the GBT questionnaire. Initially, the questionnaire underwent translation, and for each question, individual calculations were made for the Content Validity Index (CVI) and Content Validity Ratio (CVR). The reliability of the questionnaire was assessed through internal and external consistency methods, in addition to the retest method, employing the Kuder-Richardson index (KR-21). The study participants had an average age of 5.74 ± 0.42 years. The CVR index exceeded the minimum acceptable level, as per Lawshe Table (0.42). The overall CVI index reached 0.901, surpassing the minimum acceptable value (0.79), indicating the appropriateness of the questions' content. Moreover, the entire questionnaire demonstrated reliability (r = 0.256, P = 0.151), and the Cod Richardson 21 coefficient at the study's onset and conclusion were 0.726 and 0.844, respectively. The results of the present study indicate that the GBT questionnaire, meeting the minimum acceptable value of CVR and yielding favorable results in the CVI index, is a valid and reliable tool for assessing children's ability to recognize inappropriate touches. The confirmation of both quantitative and qualitative content validity, along with form validity and questionnaire reliability, strengthens the robustness of the tool in its intended purpose.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40653-025-00689-y.