Development and validation of a novel cosmetics safety assessment scale (CSAS): Factual understanding of cosmetic safety and fostering international awareness

BACKGROUND: Falsified cosmetics are increasingly common especially online through social media networks and mobile applications. OBJECTIVES: This study developed and validated a novel tool to evaluate the safety of cosmetics and personal care products in the United Araba Emirates (UAE). METHOD: This is methodological validation study and the data were derived from a cross-sectional study conducted on students and staff at Ajman University (AU) in the UAE. The study sample was selected via simple random sampling. The link to the survey was sent to potential respondents via email, and the responses were analysed using SPSS version 26. Content validity, factor analysis, and known group validity were employed to construct and validate an instrument that will enable the identification of cosmetics safety. The instrument’s reliability was evaluated using test-retest reliability, internal consistency, item internal consistency (IIC), and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). RESULTS: The study sample included 978 participants. The content validity index for the final 24-item scale was 0.84. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin value was 0.959 with a statistically significant Bartlett’s test of sphericity (p <0.001). Factor analysis presented a three-component model. PCFA analysis found good fit values with 0.960 for the normed fit index, 0.977 for the comparative fit index, and 0.987 for the Tucker Lewis Index. All values were in excess of 0.95, and the root mean square error of approximation was below 0.06 (0.03); thus, the model had a good fit. Cronbach’s alpha also showed good consistency of the overall instrument (0.963), and all factors had a Cronbach’s alpha above 0.70. Each item on the instrument met the IIC correlation standard of ≥ 0.40, and there were good overall ICC statistics of 0.963 (0.959–0.966) for the instrument as a whole with statistical significance (p < 0.001). The instrument’s test-retest reliability was assessed by correlating the respondents’ identification scores at two time points with a four-week gap revealing a correlation coefficient of 0.870 (p-value <0.01). Participants holding a bachelor’s degree were more likely to be able to identify safe and authentic cosmetics than those with a high-school educational level (p = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: This study developed a novel validated instrument to determine the safety of cosmetics. The final questionnaire uses 24 items on three dimensions (13 items on hazard information, eight items on product identity, and three items on product handling and storage). The tool is concise and easy to complete, and it is suitable for use among the general population. The use of this instrument can promote greater collaboration between the consumer health regulatory authorities and inspection authorities thus increasing consumer satisfaction and public participation.