The factor structure of the Dispositional Hope Scale in hemiplegic stroke patients.

BACKGROUND: Hope is an important coping strategy and psychological resource for patients with a chronic illness. Stroke patients are exposed to stressful situations such as limited daily life activities, cognitive impairments and financial burdens.

AIM: This study investigated the factor structure of the Dispositional Hope Scale (DHS) and verified its validity when examining stroke patients.

METHODS: This methodological study used secondary, cross-sectional data analysis to investigate the factors related to participation restriction in chronic stroke patients. The DHS's reliability was assessed by calculating the internal consistency of Cronbach's α. The structure of the DHS was analyzed by confirmatory factor analysis. The one-factor model (Korean version), two-factor model (original version) and bifactor models were compared.

RESULTS: The fit indices provided evidence for the two-factor DHS model among hemiplegic stroke patients. Although the two-factor model was identified as superior by the Akaike information criterion value, both models had strong goodness-of-fit indices. The DHS had an adequate level of internal consistency in measuring hope in stroke patients.

CONCLUSIONS: The DHS is a valid, reliable and useful tool for examining hemiplegic stroke patients. Identifying the psychometric properties of the DHS can help health professionals implement program development for stroke patients.