The Beck Anxiety Inventory for Malays (BAI-Malay): A Preliminary Study on Psychometric Properties
- Author:
M Firdaus & Z Nor Sheereen
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Beck anxiety inventory, Malay, reliability, validity, Malaysia
- From:Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences
2011;7(1):75-82
- CountryMalaysia
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Introduction: The purpose of the present study was to investigate exploratory factor analysis of the
Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and reports its reliability and validity in Malaysia. Method: One thousand
and ninety participants from four different samples (namely students, general population, medical and
psychiatric patients) completed the Malay version of Beck Anxiety Inventory, as well as additional
questionnaires such as Fear Questionnaire, Anxiety Sensitivity Index, Depression Anxiety Stress Scale,
and Catastrophic Cognition Questionnaire. Results: Exploratory factor analysis revealed a three factor
solution and accounted for 48.01% of the total variance. The three-factor structure appeared to be;
subjective anxiety, autonomic, and neurophysiology. The Cronbach alpha coefficients (α) ranged from
0.66 to 0.89 with satisfactory overall alpha value (.91). Evidence was also found acceptable concurrent
validity of the BAI-Malay (range between r=.22 to r=.67). Conclusion: This study shows that the BAIMalay
is a reliable and valid instrument to measure symptoms of anxiety in the Malay population
and can be used in research and clinical service in Malaysia. However, replication of study by using
confirmatory factor analysis and application of the instrument among anxiety patients worth of further
investigation.
