Factor structure of the Chinese version of the geriatric anxiety inventory

BACKGROUND: As China’s population ages, the mental health of older people has been increasingly focused on by academic circles. PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to identify the factor structure of the Chinese version of the geriatric anxiety inventory (GAI-CV). METHODS: This study used data collected from Investigation on the anxiety symptoms of the elderly in the city of Beijing supported by scientific research fund project of Renmin University of China. Cronbach’s α was used to test internal consistency reliability. Both confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses were performed separately for factor analysis. RESULTS: 1318 subjects with mean age 71.35 ± 7.44 years (male 40.6 %) were involved. Principal components analysis revealed a three-factor structure of the GAI-CV. GAI-CV scales exhibited good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.937) and a three-factor model fit the data well [comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.891, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.084]. CONCLUSIONS: The Chinese version of the GAI appears to be reliable and valid to measure anxiety for elderly people in China.