Principal factor and reliability analysis of the Malay version of DASS21, CBI and Brief COPE questionnaire among Malaysian OSH competent person

Background: Questionnaire has long been one of the acceptable form of data collection tools for medical and health sciences. It is convenient and reliable when used and psychometrically tested to the intended populations. This study aims to evaluate the principal factor and reliability analysis of the Malay versions of DASS21, CBI and Brief-COPE questionnaire among Malaysian OSH competent person. Methods: A total of 40 OSH competent persons participated in the study. IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 26.0 software was used for statistical analysis. Principal Factor Analysis was computed to assess factor analysis, while Cronbach's alpha and the intraclass correlation coefficient for individual items were used to measure the internal consistency and reliability of the questionnaires. Results: Principal Factor Analysis revealed that the number of components and items in each questionnaire aligned with the original versions, and the Kaiser’s criterion along with Cattell’s rule supported the appropriate number of factors to be retained for each questionnaire. Reliability testing indicated that all questionnaires demonstrated high internal consistency and exhibited good to excellent reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha values ranging from 0.900 to 0.951 and intraclass correlation coefficient values ranging from 0.895 to 0.946. Conclusion: This study showed that the Malay versions of DASS21, CBI and Brief-COPE questionnaires are validated tools for use among Malaysian OSH competent persons