Adaptation of the Social Determinants of Health Scale for University Students to Turkish: A Validity and Reliability Study

Aim: Focusing, researching, identifying and producing solutions for the social health needs of university students is an important step in terms of individual and public health. The main purpose of this study is to make the Turkish adaptation of the social determinants of health scale and psychometric analyses to identify university students who are at risk for their social health needs and to solve their problems. Method: The social determinants of health scale for university students was administered to 322 students. For the validity of the scale, content validity index, confirmatory factor analysis, similarity, and discriminant validity coefficients were used, while for reliability, item-total correlations, internal consistency coefficient, and test-retest analysis were utilized. Results: The content validity index of the Turkish form of the social determinants of health scale for university students was found to be 0.89, and it was decided that there was a consensus among experts. The test-retest reliability correlation was 0.81 and the Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient was 0.71, which was found to be a reliable scale. The scale, which consists of three sub-dimensions measuring general social health needs, social health needs of university students, and promotive social health factors, was compatible with its original form. Conclusion: The social determinants of the health scale for university students were found to be valid and reliable for Turkish culture. It is thought that it will be useful in determining the social health needs of university students.