Reliability and validity of the Arabic version of the biological rhythms interview of assessment in neuropsychiatry

BACKGROUND: Disruptions in biological rhythm (BR) are considered a factor in the spread of many chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and depression. It has been shown that imbalance in BR disrupts the body’s physiological timings; therefore, it is essential to have a tool for BR evaluation. METHODS: A cross‐sectional study was conducted on a sample of 403 Jordanian participants (200 depressed people and 203 control groups). Classical test theory (CTT) was used to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of BRIAN. We aimed to validate the Arabic version of Biological Rhythms Interview Assessment in Neuropsychiatry (BRIAN) by investigating its internal consistency and validity, assessing its factor structure, and exploring its relationships with depression and sleep disorders. RESULTS: The internal consistency (α) was 0.91. The concurrent validity was supported by the severity of depression and sleep disorders (r = 0.87, r = 0.83, p < 0.001). The BRIAN’s ability to differentiate between depressed people and the control group supported its discriminant validity (t = 21.2, p = 0.001). With a sensitivity of 75 and a specificity of 95.57, BRIAN revealed good accuracy in distinguishing between depressed and non‐depressed persons at cutoff 44. The exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) analyses supported its proposed three‐factor solutions. CONCLUSIONS: The results demonstrated that the BRIAN‐A has acceptable validity in detecting BR and could be useful in examining the impact of circadian disturbance on the Arabic population.