Creating the Chinese version of the transgender attitudes and beliefs scale

Abstract

Abstract Background Trans persons’ physical and mental health is easily affected by the attitude of those around them. However, China currently lacks a valid psychometric instrument to investigate people’s attitudes toward trans persons. Therefore, this study modifies the English version of the Transgender Attitudes and Beliefs Scale (TABS) to suit the Chinese context. It subsequently examines the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the TABS. Methods This study recruited 1164 university students, aged 18–25 years, from 7 regions of China. SPSS26.0 and AMOS24.0 were used for data statistical analysis. Critical ratio method and correlation coefficient method were used for item analysis. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were used to test the structural validity of the Chinese version of Transgender Beliefs and Attitudes Scale, and the internal consistency reliability of the scale was tested. Results The TABS-C contains 26 items with 3 factors. The Cronbach’s alpha was 0.957 for the total scale and 0.945, 0.888, and 0.885 for the 3 factors. The half-point reliability of the scale was 0.936, and the retest reliability was 0.877. The Pearson correlation coefficients for the 3 factors and the total scale score ranged from 0.768 to 0.946. Conclusion The TABS-C has reliable psychometric properties and is suitable for usage among college students in the Chinese context.