Reliability and validity of ULS-8 loneliness scale in elderly samples in a rural community / 中南大学学报(医学版)

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the reliability and validity of the short-form of the UCLA loneliness scale (ULS-8) among Chinese rural community-dwelling elderly.@*METHODS@#ULS-8 was used for 839 Chinese rural community-dwelling elderly during face-to-face interviews.@*RESULTS@#After deleting item-3 (I am an outgoing person) and item-6 (I can find companionship when I want it), the exploratory factor analysis showed that the construction of the new scale (ULS-6) fit the original construction of ULS-8, a single-factor resolution. Cronbach's α coefficient of ULS-6 was 0.831. Test-retest reliability was 0.715. All item-total correlations reached statistical significance. The total score of ULS-6 was correlated to quality of life, social support, suicidal ideation, and current major depression episode.@*CONCLUSION@#ULS-6 shows satisfactory reliability and validity and meets the needs of psychometric properties, and can be used for the evaluation of loneliness among Chinese rural elderly.