Development and Testing of a Partnership Scale for Couples Undergoing Fertility Treatment

Abstract

Aims: The purpose of this study was to develop and test the reliability and validity of the Couple's Partnership during Fertility Treatment Scale.
Methods: Interview data and concept analysis yielded a draft of 40 items called the partnership scale used in two surveys. The first survey conducted confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory factor analysis based on data from a purposive sample of 535 patients. The second survey confirmed the stability of the data from 110 patients by test–retest.
Results: Construct validity was tested with exploratory factor analysis and resulted in 18 items with a 3-factor solution: “emotional support,” “understanding the burden,” and “cooperation with treatment.” The total score and subscale scores of the Partnership Scale showed excellent internal consistency. Sufficient criterion-related validity was confirmed by the FertiQoL tool, the relational subscale of the FertiQoL tool, and the relationship satisfaction score with a 1% level of significance. In addition, confirmatory factor analyses indicated that a 3-factor model for the 18-item Partnership Scale was valid. The second survey tested test–retest reliability for 110 patients. The result of Spearman's correlation coefficients resulted in a total score that was acceptable (r_s=0.71).
Conclusions: This study developed and tested a questionnaire to measure a couple's partnership while undergoing fertility treatment. As a result, the stability and internal consistency and criterion-related validity were high. Therefore, high reliability and validity has been confirmed.