Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Condom Self-Efficacy Scale: application to Brazilian adolescents and young adults

OBJECTIVE: translate and adapt the Condom Self-Efficacy Scale to Portuguese in the Brazilian context. The scale originated in the United States and measures self-efficacy in condom use. METHOD: methodological study in two phases: translation, cross-cultural adaptation and verification of psychometric properties. The translation and adaptation process involved four translators, one mediator of the synthesis and five health professionals. The content validity was verified using the Content Validation Index, based on 22 experts’ judgments. Forty subjects participated in the pretest, who contributed to the understanding of the scale items. The scale was applied to 209 students between 13 and 26 years of age from a school affiliated with the state-owned educational network. The reliability was analyzed by means of Cronbach’s alpha. RESULTS: the Portuguese version of the scale obtained a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.85 and the total mean score was 68.1 points. A statistically significant relation was found between the total scale and the variables not having children (p= 0.038), condom use (p= 0.008) and condom use with fixed partner (p=0.036). CONCLUSION: the Brazilian version of the Condom Self-Efficacy Scale is a valid and reliable tool to verify the self-efficacy in condom use among adolescents and young adults.