Objectifying content validity: conducting a content validity study in social work research.

Social scientists frequently study complex constructs. Despite the plethora of measures for these constructs, researchers may need to create their own measure for a particular study. When a measure is created, psychometric testing is required, and the first step is to study the content validity of the measure. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how to conduct a content validity study, including how to elicit the most from a panel of experts by collecting specific data. Instructions on how to calculate a content validity index, factorial validity index, and an interrater reliability index and guide for interpreting these indices are included. Implications regarding the value of conducting a content validity study for practitioners and researchers are discussed.

Key words: constructs; content validity; measure; psychometric testing

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Researchers in the social sciences study complex constructs for which valid and reliable measures are needed. The measures should be brief, clear, and easy to administer. Measures that are too long or difficult to read may result in a lowered response rate or inaccurate responses. In addition, the measure must be appropriate for use in the targeted population. For example, measures designed for use with heterogeneous populations may not be appropriate for a specific population with certain characteristics.

A plethora of measures exist with known psychometric properties, but researchers may need to develop a new measure for a particular construct because no measure exists that operationalizes the construct as the researcher conceptualized it. In these circumstances, a content validity study should be conducted.

VALIDITY

Traditionally, three types of validity may be demonstrated: content, criterion, and construct validity.

Content Validity

Content validity refers to the extent to which the items on a measure assess the same content or how well the content material was sampled in the measure. Content validity can be characterized as face validity or logical validity. Face va...

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