Reliability and validity of the Healthy Fitness Measurement Scale Version 1.0 (HFMS V1.0) in Chinese people

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the reliability and validity of Healthy Fitness Measurement Scale Version 1.0 (HFMS V1.0) for different population cohorts in the city of Guangzhou, Guangdong, China and to provide evidence and tools for further evaluation of healthy fitness of Chinese population and related factors. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Urban neighbourhood and Medical University. PARTICIPANTS: Elderly people (n=393; mean age 68.27±6.38 years; 53.18% male), university students (n=390; mean age 19.29±1.29 years; 38.21% male) and urban residents (n=393; mean age 32.23±9.41 years; 44.78% male). PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcomes were evaluated the reliability and validity of HFMS V1.0 by internal consistency evaluation, split-half reliability, test–retest reliability, convergent and discriminant construct validity, and factor analysis. RESULTS: The Cronbach’s α coefficients for HFMS V1.0 were all greater than 0.85 for overall scale of total samples and three individual groups, and the split-half reliability and intragroup correlation coefficients were both greater than 0.70 (p<0.01). The correlation of each item, dimension and subscales ranged from 0.52 to 0.91 (p < 0.01). A total of 10 factors were screened by exploratory factor analysis with the cumulative contribution rate of 61.40%, basically consistent with the theoretical structure of scale. The confirmatory factor analysis indicated good fit: CMIN/DF=3.45, root mean square error of approximation=0.05, GFI=0.91, AGFI=0.90, IFI=0.90, comparative fit index=0.90. CONCLUSION: HFMS V1.0 showed acceptable reliability and validity in the test of healthy fitness of general population in Guangzhou. This scale could be a reliable measurement tool for evaluation of healthy fitness and potential risk factors.