Aim: The aim of this study was to develop and to validate the self-administered Falun health instrument. An additional aim was to test its applicability in measuring people's lifestyles linked to health.
Methods: In 2002, an instrument was constructed containing questions regarding the hazardous use of alcohol, tobacco, unhealthy diets and insufficient physical activity. A pilot study using the instrument was assessed between 2002 and 2006. In Sweden, it was further expanded and tested during the years 2004-2014 among a total of 1295 people.
Results: Face validity was evaluated among colleagues and experts for clarity and completeness resulting in minor adjustments of some questions. With the test-retest method, the self-administered Falun health questionnaire showed a positive and high reproducibility and high compliance. Cronbach's alpha showed a high level of consistency (average 0.86). Factor analysis demonstrated the choice of questions correlated highly to the measured lifestyle.
Conclusions: This study showed that the self-administered Falun health questionnaire is a valid and reliable instrument, useful for detecting individuals at risk of developing diseases that are related to individual choice of lifestyle.
Keywords: Health behaviour; Health education; Health interventions; Instrument development; Life style; Public Health; Self-reported health.