Purpose: To examine the construct, discriminative, and predictive validity, and the test-retest reliability of the Arabic Meaningful Use of Speech Scale (MUSS).
Methods: Parents of 102 children with cochlear implantation (CI) with a matching control group of 102 children with normal hearing completed the Arabic-MUSS scale. A random subsample of 30 parents was interviewed after two weeks to examine the test-retest reliability.
Results: the construct validity of the Arabic-MUSS was established by exploratory factor analysis that yielded a unidimensional scale and explained a total of 92.48% of the variance in the total score of the Arabic-MUSS. The internal consistency of the scale was excellent with Cronbach's alpha = 0.975. The Arabic-MUSS discriminative validity was supported by the significant difference between the total score of children with CI and children with normal hearing (p < 0.0001). The Arabic-MUSS has a moderate predictive validity as demonstrated by the moderate correlation between the total score and the time since cochlear implantation (p < 0.001). The Arabic-MUSS has excellent test-retest reliability.
Conclusion: The Arabic-MUSS is a valid and reliable measure that can be used to guide plans for auditory rehabilitation and monitor the progress of children with cochlear implantation over time.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONThe Arabic-Meaningful Use of Speech Scale is a valid and reliable parent-report assessment.The Arabic-Meaningful Use of Speech Scale evaluates functional speech in children with cochlear implantation.Clinicians can use the Arabic- Meaningful Use of Speech Scale to plan and monitor the progress of auditory rehabilitation programs.
Keywords: Arabic; Cochlear implantation; Meaningful Use of Speech Scale; children; psychometrics.