Psychometric properties of the Occupational Balance Questionnaire 11-Chinese version.

Background: Occupational balance (OB) is a subjective feeling of having the right amount and variety of occupations.

Aims/objectives: The study aims to translate the Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ11) into Chinese (OBQ11-C) and to examine its psychometric properties for people with depression in Taiwan.

Material/methods: The OBQ11 was translated and reviewed by 10 experts. Subjects with depression were referred from two psychiatric outpatient clinic in central Taiwan. Cognitive debriefing involved 10 subjects, while 161 subjects (average age = 39.2 ± 14.0, 66.5% female) were assessed for reliability and validity using classical test theory by PASW 20.0 and Rasch analysis by Winsteps 5.3.0.

Results: The OBQ11-C showed good content validity, internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.90), item-total correlation (0.49-0.77) and test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.90). Rasch analysis results supported the four-point Likert scale, unidimensionality, item separation (3.95), item reliability (0.94), person separation (2.87) and person reliability (0.89), and may have cultural and population differences compared with other language versions.

Conclusions: The OBQ11-C is a valid tool for assessing OB in Chinese-speaking individuals, particularly those with depression in Taiwan.

Significance: This study validates a tool designed to assess OB as a foundation for creating individualised, occupation-based programmes for individuals with depression.