Examining the Personal Experience of Aging Scale With the Three Step Test Interview

A study on aging experience in patients with rheumatic diseases showed low statistical consistency (Cronbach's alpha) for the Physical Decline subscale of the Personal Experience of Aging Scale whereas the scale functioned very well in preceding surveys. This discrepancy led to the decision to examine the contextual validity of the subscale with a cognitive interview methodology. In the current study we applied the Three Step Test Interview as a cognitive interviewing device to explore misinterpretations and other problems in answering the PD questionnaire items, with the aim of identifying item improvements that might also be beneficial to the statistical quality of the PD subscale. Some problems were identified that were not related to the statistical inter-item correlation rates, nor to the arthritis context of this sample, but were rather due to faulty item formulation. Reformulations were designed to improve the items. The report of this study follows the Cognitive Interviewing Reporting Framework. Experiences with this new guideline are discussed.