Validation of a Short, 3-Item Version of the Subjective Numeracy Scale

Candace D. McNaughton, Kerri L. Cavanaugh, Sunil Kripalani, Russell L. Rothman and Kenneth A. Wallston

Medical Decision Making, 2015, vol. 35, issue 8, 932-936

Abstract: Background and Objective. Efficiency in scale design reduces respondent burden. A brief but reliable measure of numeracy may provide a useful research tool eligible for integration into large epidemiological studies or clinical trials. Our goal was to validate a 3-item version of the Subjective Numeracy Scale (SNS-3). Design and Setting. We examined 7 separate cross-sectional data sets: patients in the emergency department ( n = 208), clinic ( n = 205), and hospital ( n = 460; n = 2053) and patients with chronic kidney disease ( n = 147), with diabetes ( n = 318), and on hemodialysis ( n = 143). Measurements: Internal reliability of the SNS-3 was assessed with Cronbach’s α. Criterion validity was determined by nonparametric correlations of the SNS-3 with SNS-8 and other measures of numeracy; construct validity was determined by correlations with measures of health literacy and education. Results: The SNS-3 had good internal reliability (median Cronbach’s α = 0.78) and correlated highly with the full SNS (median Ï = 0.91). The SNS-3 was significantly correlated with other measures of numeracy (e.g., median Ï = 0.57 with the Wide Range Achievement Test 4), health literacy (e.g., median Ï = 0.35 with the Shortened Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults), and education (median Ï = 0.41), providing good evidence of criterion and construct validity. Conclusion: The SNS-3 is sufficiently reliable and valid to be used as a measure of subjective numeracy.

Keywords: scale development; numeracy; health literacy; psychometric models (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:medema:v:35:y:2015:i:8:p:932-936

DOI: 10.1177/0272989X15581800

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