Psychometric testing of the self-care of chronic illness inventory in a Western Asian country

Aim: This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Self-Care of Chronic Illness Inventory (SC-CII) among individuals with chronic conditions living in a Western Asian (WA) country. Design: This was a methodological, observational, cross-sectional study. Methods: The study sample comprised patients in inpatient and outpatient settings with at least one chronic condition. The participants completed the SC-CII, which comprises three scales: self-care maintenance, self-care monitoring, and self-care management. Factorial validity was tested by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Internal consistency was explored using Cronbach's alpha, the composite reliability coefficient, and the global reliability index for multidimensional scales. The intraclass correlation coefficient was calculated to determine test-retest reliability. Construct validity was assessed through hypothesis testing. The measurement error was evaluated to estimate responsiveness to change. Results: A total of 215 participants were included (mean age, 65.73 ± 8.65; 56.7% female; 39.1% elementary school-level education). The participants reported an average of 2.11 ± 0.77 chronic conditions. CFA supported a two-factor structure for the self-care maintenance and self-care management scales, and a unidimensional structure for the self-care monitoring scale. Internal consistency was satisfactory, with reliability indices ≥ 0.80. The intraclass correlation coefficients for test-retest reliability ranged from 0.884 to 0.907 across the scales. Significant positive correlations were observed among the three dimensions of self-care and between self-care behaviors and self-care self-efficacy, supporting convergent validity. Conclusion: The SC-CII is a reliable instrument that produces valid data for evaluating self-care behaviors in clinical and research settings. Its use may help identify patients at risk for inadequate self‑care and guide the development of tailored educational and behavioral interventions. Reporting method: The results are reported in accordance with COSMIN guidelines.