Evaluation of Psychometric Properties of the Persian version of the Postnatal Obsessive Compulsive Scale (POCS)

Abstract

Algebraic obsessive-compulsive disorder is a disturbing and repetitive thought, impulse or image that causes significant distress and anxiety. Identifying and measuring these thoughts after childbirth is very important. The aim of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the postpartum obsessive-compulsive disorder scale. Materials and Methods: This study is a psychometric exploration that was performed from September 2020 to September 2021. The statistical population of the study was mothers referring to urban health centers in Tabriz in the postpartum period. The sample size was 320 people who were selected by multistage sampling method. To collect data, three questionnaires including demographic and social characteristics, Postpartum Algebraic Disorder Scale and Yale Brown Questionnaire were used. Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, Pearson correlation and Cronbach's alpha were used. Statistical calculations were performed using SPSS software version 18. Results: KMO index for the questionnaire was 0.88. The 30 questions of the questionnaire were classified into two factors that, in total, explain 61.7% of the total variance of the data. The factor loads obtained for all items in the confirmatory factor analysis were greater than 0.4 and had sufficient validity to be maintained in the measurement model. Criterion validity for the whole questionnaire 0.82; For the intellectual dimension, obsessive-compulsive disorder was 0.83 and for the practical dimension, obsessive-compulsive disorder was 0.73. Time reliability was calculated to be 0.82, for the intellectual dimension of obsessive-compulsive disorder equal to 0.82 and for the practical dimension of obsessive-compulsive disorder equal to 0.80. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the general scale of obsessive-compulsive disorder was 0.91, for the intellectual dimension of obsessive-compulsive disorder was 0.95 and for the practical dimension of obsessive-compulsive disorder was 0.96.