Although many instruments are used to assess the families of people with diabetes, their measurement properties have not been systematically reviewed. We aimed to identify and evaluate the psychometric properties of the instruments used to assess family functioning in adults with diabetes.
Methods: A systematic literature review, according to the JBI systematic reviews of measurement properties, was conducted using different databases, including gray literature. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42021239733. Two independent reviewers searched, screened, and assessed the risk of bias among the articles according to the COSMIN methodology. The quality of each included instrument was assessed using the updated criteria for good measurement properties.
Results: Eighty-one studies were included, and thirty-one eligible instruments were identified. The psychometric properties frequently assessed were structural validity, internal consistency, and construct validity.
Conclusions: Although 31 instruments were included, none of their psychometric properties were scored as "very good". From the instruments scored as adequate on development and content validity, five stood out for their quality appraisal.. The development of new instruments is not recommended. More studies should be conducted on the existing instruments to assess the less commonly evaluated psychometric properties. Using valid instruments to develop and evaluate interventions is essential to promote health literacy and the effectiveness of diabetes management.
Keywords: diabetes mellitus; family; health literacy; nursing; psychometrics; systematic review.