Utilising a content analysis approach to assess measurement tools used in the management of general feverish illness in children

Abstract

Background: Convention states that it is inappropriate to use tools that have not undergone validity and reliability testing in order to form conclusions on the topic they are assessing. The use of content analysis to aid in the profiling and retrieval of measurement tools may be useful to inform tool design. These analysis methods can be applied effectively to any topic area to streamline questionnaire development. The aim of this review was to demonstrate that the utilisation of a content analysis of instruments found in literature may be helpful to aid in the profiling and development of a measurement tool in fever.

Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PubMED, PsycINFO and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts were searched in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Studies were included if they contained a structured or semi-structured measurement tool and a focus on fever management, knowledge or participant attitudes, beliefs or behaviours of fever. All items extracted were imputed into NVivo11 and a thematic content analyses based on themes and style of question were undertaken.

Results: A total of 99 manuscripts were reviewed containing 82 unique measurement tools. A total of 1525 items were content analysed in 3 separate content analyses including the fever 'theme', the style of question and whether the question was based on knowledge, attitudes, beliefs or behaviours. A large proportion of manuscripts (41/99) had no reported form of validity or reliability testing undertaken on the tool utilised in the study. The majority of items (n = 778) were attitude/belief questions, and the most common question types were Likert-Type Scale(n = 380) items.

Conclusion: Through the methodology of undertaking content analyses of literature, it is possible to streamline the tool development process by incorporating previously established data and circumventing the creation of items from the ground up. This was apparent in this content analysis of fever management tools.

Keywords: Content analysis; Fever; Measurement tools; Methodology; Questionnaire; Review.