Psychometric Analyses in the Transcultural Adaptation of Psychological Scales

Abstract

Measurement scales play an important role in the methodology of psychological research and practice. They make it possible to obtain scores linked to numerous individual characteristics (feeling of hope, perceived stress, experience, felt well-being, etc.) and thus to draw up a profile of respondents or to compare several situations with each other according to their psychological impact. Most of the research on the construction of these scales is Anglo-Saxon and, therefore, proposes scales in English. However, many non-English speaking countries feel the need to use these scales for their studies, which requires them to be translated into a target language. This proposed chapter describes the steps and psychometric analyses required to adapt an English scale in another language. Based in particular on the recommendations of the International Test Commission and the APA Standards of Practice for Testing, this chapter aims to guide researchers who wish to undertake the translation of a psychological scale. It also includes an analysis of the literature on the translation practices of some one hundred scales, translated and published recently in various scientific journals.