Developing an instrument to measure dental flossing in Iranian adolescents

Preventable risk factors for oral health diseases are linked to related self-efficacy, attitudes and behaviors. The purpose of this study was to develop an instrument to measure oral self-care, based on the Transtheoretical model and to report on the psychometric testing of the instrument. The findings from qualitative research from Sanandaj, Iran, was used to generate the initial items. Construct validity was tested using principal component analysis to extract factors. Results: Factor analysis yielded 7 factors (28 items) related to interdental cleaning: 1 self-efficacy factor, 3 factors related to perceived benefits and 3 factors related to perceived barriers. Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient ranged from .83 to .87. These preliminary results provide support for using the instrument to measure decisional balance and self-efficacy of interdental cleaning in Iranian adolescents.