Development and validation of a tool to evaluate Inpatient Beliefs, Expectations and Attitudes toward Reflexology (IBEAR-16)
Moderate EvidenceIn Plain Language: reflexology, explained
The integration of manual therapies, including reflexology, into conventional care settings is growing extensively. Patients' beliefs, attitudes and expectations toward these therapies interact with their outcomes, but currently there are no validated tools to evaluate these factors. We aimed to design and to validate such a tool specifically targeted into reflexology. Following input of a multidisciplinary team of experts, the self-administered Inpatient Beliefs, Expectations and Attitudes toward Reflexology (IBEAR) questionnaire was constructed, containing 25 items, 8 referring to demographics and 17 specifically addressing reflexology. Cronbach's alpha was computed to evaluate the questionnaire's internal reliability, and factor analysis was used for further validation (232 patients). Pearson coefficient and Kappa tests were used to test and retest (within 48 hours) the questionnaire on a group of 199 patients, to assure clarity and reliability. For the 232 questionnaires collected, the computed Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.716 (acceptable reliability). Factor analysis pointed to two content areas separated into four items addressing attitudes and expectations and five items focusing on beliefs and attitudes. In the test-retest stage, 199 participants filled in the questionnaire for a second time. The Pearson coefficient for all questions ranged between 0.73 and 0.94 (good to excellent correlation) and Kappa scores ranged between 0.66 and 1.0 (moderate to high reliability). Consequently, one of the questions was removed from the IBEAR. The present study provides evidence that the proposed IBEAR questionnaire with 16 items is a valid and reliable tool for evaluation of inpatients' beliefs, expectations and attitudes toward reflexology.
Key Findings: what this cross-sectional study found
- ✓The IBEAR-16 questionnaire was successfully developed and validated as the first tool specifically designed to measure inpatient beliefs, expectations, and attitudes toward reflexology in conventional healthcare settings.
- ✓The questionnaire demonstrated strong internal reliability and test-retest reliability within 48 hours, establishing it as a dependable instrument for assessing patient perceptions of reflexology.
- ✓Patient beliefs, attitudes, and expectations toward reflexology are important factors that interact with treatment outcomes but previously lacked a validated measurement tool in clinical research.
What This Means for You
This study validates a tool to measure your beliefs about reflexology, which suggests researchers are taking patient perspectives seriously, though the tool itself doesn't tell us whether reflexology actually works for your condition.
What This Means for Practitioners
The IBEAR-16 is now a validated instrument you can use to assess and better understand your patients' expectations and attitudes toward reflexology, which may help you tailor your approach and manage realistic outcomes.
Study Design: how this cross-sectional study was run
Common questions about this study
What does this study mean in practice?
This study validates a tool to measure your beliefs about reflexology, which suggests researchers are taking patient perspectives seriously, though the tool itself doesn't tell us whether reflexology actually works for your condition.
What did this study find?
The IBEAR-16 questionnaire was successfully developed and validated as the first tool specifically designed to measure inpatient beliefs, expectations, and attitudes toward reflexology in conventional healthcare settings. The questionnaire demonstrated strong internal reliability and test-retest reliability within 48 hours, establishing it as a dependable instrument for assessing patient perceptions of reflexology. Patient beliefs, attitudes, and expectations toward reflexology are important factors that interact with treatment outcomes but previously lacked a validated measurement tool in clinical research.
How strong is this evidence?
This is a cross-sectional study and we rate its evidence moderate. It covers 232 participants. It was published in Complementary therapies in medicine, a Q2 journal. Reflexology is a complementary therapy, not a replacement for medical treatment.
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