Abstract
Objectives: To describe the translation and test of the Danish version of the original British ‘Rheumatoid Arthritis Self‐Efficacy Questionnaire’ (RASE).
Methods: The questionnaire was forward and back translated by individuals with Danish and English as their respective primary languages. The questionnaire was tested by five lay‐people and in the field by 10 + five persons with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). A test‐retest was performed on 62 outpatients with RA. The sensitivity of the adapted Danish version of RASE (RASE‐DK) was finally tested on 106 outpatients with RA – before, immediately after and three months after they had participated in a short self‐management course performed by a multidisciplinary team.
Results: RASE‐DK showed good face validity, but ‘relaxation’ was interpreted in various ways. Internal consistency evaluated by Cronbach's alpha was 0.91. Reliability evaluated by the intra‐class correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.88. A Bland–Altman plot showed good agreement. RASE‐DK, like the original English version of RASE, was not associated with disease activity (Disease Activity Score, DAS‐28) or disability (Health Assessment Questionnaire, HAQ), and correlated significantly with the Arthritis Self‐Efficacy Scale (ASES) subscales ‘other’ and ‘pain’, and total ASES. RASE‐DK showed a highly significant change, from baseline to immediately after participation in the short course (p < 0.001). The effect faded during the following three months.
Conclusion: RASE‐DK met the appropriate standards for validity, reliability and sensitivity, and is appropriate for use in Denmark. However, the concept of self‐efficacy may be too abstract for a few individuals, and relaxation is interpreted in various ways by the Danish patients. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.