Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1D) is one of the most common chronic diseases affecting children and adolescents. The daily management of T1D requires continuous insulin therapy, as well as the inevitable adjustment of daily activities according to glycaemic control, both of which may result in experiencing T1D related stigma. A significant proportion of people with T1D have been shown to experience social discrimination and stigma, which can lead to emotional distress and act as a barrier to help-seeking behavior. This study presents the psychometric properties of the Greek translation of the Diabetes Stigma Assessment Scale-1 (DSAS-1), which assesses self-perceived stigma in people with T1D. A sample of 105 adults with T1D, mostly females (70.5%), with a mean age of 34.3 years (±11.1), and mean disease duration of 19.4 years (±10.5), completed the translated in Greek DSAS-1 (DSAS-1-Gr). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to investigate the construct validity of the scale. In line with the original version, the results of the present study supported the three-factor model of the scale 'identity concerns', 'different treatment', 'blame and judgment'. The internal consistency indices (Cronbach alpha) of the three subscales were above α=.80 and .88 for the whole scale. Moderate correlations were found between the DSAS-1-Gr and the Diabetes Distress scale for type 1 Diabetes (T1-DDS), the Rosenberg self-esteem scale, and the DASS-21 subscales (depression, anxiety, and stress), which is indicative of convergent validity. DSAS-1-Gr correlated negatively with the diabetes duration (in years), which was indicative of discriminant validity. Finally, females presented higher total DSAS-1-Gr score than males. DSAS-1-Gr is a valid and reliable tool to be used in clinical practice to assess stigma in Greek people with T1D.
Keywords: Type 1 diabetes mellitus; factor analysis; reliability; stigma; validity.