Assessment of Readiness for Mobility Transition：Development of the Japanese Version of the ARMT and Verification of Linguistic Validity

Abstract

Purpose：The Assessment of readiness for mobility transition (ARMT) is a self-administered questionnaire that assesses individuals' emotional and attitudinal readiness when they need to change their means of mobility, such as driving due to old age. This study aimed to examine the linguistic validity of the Japanese version of the ARMT (ARMT-J).

Methods：The translation was carried out for the “Basic Guidelines for Scale Translation.” Three occupational therapists in Japan conducted forward translation and adjustment, and a translation company conducted back translation. In addition, the original authors reviewed the back translation and the cognitive debriefing. The cognitive debriefing was conducted with five older people living in the community.

Results：Disagreements were identified on five items in the forward translation and three in the review of back translation. In particular, item 11,“ retirement community,” is not widely used in Japan and the Japanese translation differed among translators. A “retirement community” is defined as a residential area or building for the older people in other countries. The three occupational therapists who performed the translation discussed with the original author and changed the Japanese translation to “housing for the elderly.” In addition, a supplementary document was added to the translation, stating that it includes the meaning of “the need to change one's living area when one changes their means of transportation due to aging.

Conclusion：In this study, we examined the linguistic validity of the ARMT-J and developed a Japanese translation that we believe is appropriate.