The Development of a Spanish Language Instrument to Measure Genetic Knowledge of Diabetes Mellitus Type 2

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop a Spanish-language measure of genetic knowledge relevant to type 2 diabetes for use with members of the ethnically heterogeneous U.S. Latino community. Design: Review of the literature and expert content analysis guided initial instrument development. The instrument was pretested in three cognitive interview waves with 36 Latinos representative of Mexican, Central and South American, and Cuban heritage. Interview analysis indicated potential sources of response error and guided an iterative process of instrument refinement. Results: Difficulties associated with item interpretation, grammatical structure, and comprehension were identified. Analysis indicated that revisions improved item quality and enhanced cultural and linguistic appropriateness of the instrument. Conclusions: Field testing suggested initial validity of a Spanish-language instrument to measure genetic knowledge relative to type 2 diabetes. Implications for Practice: A Spanish-language measure of genetic knowledge can guide nursing interventions that support culturally appropriate integration of genetics into health care.