Clin Exp Otorhinolaryngol.  2012 Mar;5(1):10-16.

Reliability and Validity of the Chinese (Mandarin) Tinnitus Handicap Inventory

• Meng Z
• Zheng Y
• Liu S
• Wang K
• Kong X
• Tao Y
• Xu K
• Liu G

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
The Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) is a commonly used self-reporting tinnitus questionnaire. We undertook this study to determine the reliability and validity of the Chinese-Mandarin version of the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI-CM) for measuring tinnitus-related handicaps.
METHODS
We tested the test-retest reliability, internal reliability, and construct validity of the THI-CM. Two-hundred patients seeking treatment for primary or secondary tinnitus in Southwest China were asked to complete THI-CM prior to clinical evaluation. Patients were evaluated by a clinician using standard methods, and 40 patients were asked to complete THI-CM a second time 14+/-3 days after the initial interview.
RESULTS
The test-retest reliability of THI-CM was high (Pearson correlation, 0.98), as was the internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha, 0.93). Factor analysis indicated that THI-CM has a unifactorial structure.
CONCLUSION
The THI-CM version is reliable. The total score in THI-CM can be used to measure tinnitus-related handicaps in Mandarin-speaking populations.

Keyword

Tinnitus; Reliability; Validity

MeSH Terms

Asian Continental Ancestry Group
China
Humans
Reproducibility of Results
Tinnitus
Surveys and Questionnaires

Figure

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  Fig. 1 Scree plot of Chinese-Mandarin Tinnitus Handicap Inventory. The number of eigenvalue almostly reached to ten when one factor was introduced. However, it decreased dramatically when more than two factors were introduced.

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