Establishment of predictive validity and reliability of a newly developed fear of falling scale in Hong Kong

Fall events and fear of falling increase with age in healthy and frail older people. Fear of falling has been identified as a significant falls risk factor. The aims of this study were to establish the interrater and test-retest reliability and predictive validity of the fear of falling scale (FOFS). Sixty-nine subjects, 55 female and 14 male subjects, aged 65–97 years were included. Subjects were asked to respond to the FOFS on three occasions to test interrater and test-retest reliability. In the absence of a suitable comparative test for concurrent validity, balance predictive formulae were developed and relationship to Functional Reach Test, Timed up & go, and Step Test performance were compared. Intraclass coefficient (2,1) of interrater and test-retest reliability was 0.96 and 0.94, respectively. The Cronbach α for the FOFS scores collected ranged from 0.94 to 0.97. From the results of the multiple regression analyses, prediction formulae for Functional Reach Test, Timed up & go test, and Step Test from the FOFS scores were generated. These formulae then predicted balance performance by the subjects. The interrater and test-retest reliability and the predictive validity of the FOFS were established.