The Korean Version of Fear of COVID-19 Scale: Psychometric Validation in the Korean Population

• Published in: Psychiatry investigation Vol. 18; no. 4; pp. 332 - 339
• Main Authors: Hwang, Kyu-Sic, Choi, Hye-Ji, Yang, Chan-Mo, Hong, Jeongwan, Lee, Hye-Jin, Park, Min-Cheol, Jang, Seung-Ho, Lee, Sang-Yeol
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) Korean Neuropsychiatric Association 01.04.2021; 대한신경정신의학회
• Subjects: Original; 정신과학; COVID-19; Fear; Anxiety; Coronavirus; COVID-19 fear
• ISSN: 1738-3684; 1976-3026
• DOI: 10.30773/pi.2020.0420

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has psychological effects such as anxiety and depression as well as direct infection in people. The Fear of COVID-19 scale is a scale that can measure anxiety related to COVID-19 in a short time. The purpose of this study was to verify the reliability and validity the Korean version of Fear of COVID-19 scale (KF-COVID-19S). The data of total 186 normal adults and 17 patients were finally used for the statistical analysis. For internal consistency, Cronbach's α was calculated. For concurrent and discriminant validity, the correlations with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS), Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15), World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment Instrument Brief Form (WHOQOLBREF) were analyzed. For construct validity, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted. Cronbach alpha was 0.88. The two-factor model (factor 1: Physical fear, factor 2: Emotional fear) showed significantly positive correlations and appeared to be "good" fitness (CFI=0.906, IFI=0.907, NFI=0.902). The KF-COVID-19S can be a useful scale that can measure the physical and emotional fears associated with COVID-19 in a short time. Because the psychiatric patients are a more vulnerable group to the fear, it is thought that the KF-COVID-19S will help to determine the patient's level of anxiety and make a therapeutic plan for the underlying mental disorder.