A methodological framework for assessing health indices
Abstract
Tests or measures in clinical medicine or the social sciences can be used for three purposes: discriminating between subjects, predicting either prognosis or the results of some other test, and evaluating change over time. The choices made at each stage of constructing a quality of life index will differ depending on the purpose of the instrument. We explore the implications of index purpose for each stage of instrument development: selection of the item pool, item scaling, item reduction, determination of reliability, of validity, and of responsiveness. At many of these stages, not only are the requirements for discriminative, predictive, and evaluative instruments not complementary, they are actually competing. Attention to instrument purpose will clarify the choices both for those developing quality of life measures and for those selecting an appropriate instrument for clinical studies.
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The HQ will not reliably detect small but potentially meaningful changes in hyperacusis.
“The three response options only provide coarse-grained categorical units of measurement and as such will not reliably detect small but potentially meaningful changes in hyperacusis [73, 74].”
From Clinical Interventions for Hyperacusis in Adults: A Scoping Review to Assess the Current Position and Determine Priorities for Research (2017) · cites this paper as [74]
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- Authors
- Kirshner, B., & Guyatt, G.
- Affiliations
- McMaster University (CA)
- ORCID
- Guyatt, Gordon
- Venue
- Journal of Chronic Diseases
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1985-01
- Volume
- 38
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 27-36
- ISSN
- 0021-9681 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1976422995
- Cited by
- 1,538
- References
- 26
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 23 · 2024: 37 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 26 · 2021: 46 · 2020: 33 · 2019: 38 · 2018: 43 · 2017: 47 · 2016: 60 · 2015: 44 · 2014: 59 · 2013: 55 · 2012: 41
- FWCI
- 39.74
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Chronic Diseases (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Health Systems, Economic Evaluations, Quality of Life
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
- Social Sciences › Education › Health Education and Validation
- Keywords
- health indicators, quality of life indicators, instrument development, discriminant validity, predictive validity, responsiveness, reliability statistics, validity, item reduction, chronic disease
- MeSH terms
- Data Collection, Health Status Indicators, Health Surveys, Humans, Methods, Quality of Life, Surveys and Questionnaires
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