Validation of the Malay Version of the Shame and Stigma Scale among Cancer Patients in Malaysia

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 19; no. 21; p. 14266
• Main Authors: Zhang, Zheng, Azman, Nizuwan, Eyu, Hui Ting, Nik Jaafar, Nik Ruzyanei, Mohd Salleh Sahimi, Hajar, Mohamad Yunus, Mohd Razif, Mohd Shariff, Noorsuzana, Hami, Rohayu, Mansor, Nor Shuhada, Lu, Ping, Leong Bin Abdullah, Mohammad Farris Iman
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.11.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Bilingualism; Breast cancer; Cancer; Complications; Convergence; Correlation coefficient; Correlation coefficients; Factor analysis; Head & neck cancer; Humans; Interpreters; Language; Lung cancer; Malaysia; Mortality; Neoplasms; Psychometrics; Quality of Life; Questionnaires; Reliability analysis; Reproducibility of Results; Research ethics; Shame; Stigma; Surveys and Questionnaires; Translation; Validity; Malaysia; stigma; Malaysia; validity; Malay version of the Shame and Stigma Scale; cancer patients; reliability
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192114266

The assessment of stigma among cancer patients is of the utmost importance as stigma may lead to various psychological sequelae and a lower quality of life. This study aimed to translate the English version of the Shame and Stigma Scale (SSS) into Malay and validate the Malay version of the SSS (SSS-M) to assess the degree of stigma among cancer patients in Malaysia. Initially, the concurrent translation and back translation of the SSS-M were performed, and the face and content validity were assessed. Subsequently, the SSS-M was administered to a total of 234 patients with mixed types of cancer to assess its reliability (internal consistency and test-retest reliability), construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity), and conduct an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The SSS-M total score registered a good internal consistency (a Cronbach's α of 0.881) and test-retest reliability (an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.876, < 0.001). The EFA and CFA confirmed that the SSS-M consisted of 16 items in 3 domains. Its convergent and discriminant validity were achieved. Hence, the SSS-M demonstrated good psychometric properties and is available for use to assess stigma among cancer patients in Malaysia.