Cultural adaptation and Sepedi translation of the Activities-specific Balance Confidence scale

Abstract

Background: The Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale is a widely used measure to identify older adults with balance difficulties. However, its applicability in the diverse South African context is hindered by cross-cultural and linguistic differences. Limited research exists on the use of the ABC scale in native South African languages.

Objectives: This study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the ABC scale into Sepedi, evaluate its reliability and determine self-perceived balance confidence among elderly individuals in a rural community.

Method: The ABC scale was translated and culturally adapted into Sepedi. Two trained raters administered the Sepedi version of the ABC (ABC-S) scale to 32 individuals aged between 60 and 88 years. Test-retest reliability and inter-rater reliability were determined, with one rater re-administering the scale 2 weeks later.

Results: Ten items from the original ABC scale were modified because of cultural, semantic or contextual inappropriateness. The ABC-S scale demonstrated very good intra- and inter-rater reproducibility, with an average intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.85 and 0.81, respectively. The self-perceived balance confidence among elderly Sepedi individuals, as evaluated by the ABC-S scale, was high, with an average score of 81.3 and a range of 58.1 to 95.9.

Conclusion: The ABC-S scale is a reliable measurement tool to investigate balance confidence in Sepedi-speaking older adults.

Contribution: The ABC-S scale is a valuable screening tool for the identification of balance difficulties in Sepedi-speaking older adults as well as research settings.