Development of a perceived walking benefits assessment scale

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed at developing a scale that gauges perceived benefits from walking behavior.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 3,000 Japanese people aged between 40 and 64 using an internet-based questionnaire. Eight factors with 5 items (40 items in total) were identified about the benefits from walking behaviour, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were utilised to examine the validity and reliability of the scale.
Results: Seven factors with 3 items (21 items in total) were extracted which had acceptable construct validity (GFI = 0.942, AGFI = 0.921, RMSEA = 0.06). The results of internal consistency (Cronbach α = 0.80-0.88) suggested that this scale has acceptable reliability. Although the subscale was partially invalid, the scores from those who walked > 150 min/week were significantly higher than those who walked < 150 min/week. The positive consistent reliability with the test-retest was also identified (r = 0.74, p < 0.01).
Conclusion: The perceived walking benefits assessment scale of 7 factors with 21 items was developed and demonstrated acceptable validity and reliability.