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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #328727

Title: Validation of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C) among Chinese children

Author
item WANG, JING - Hong Kong Baptist University
item BARANOWSKI, TOM - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
item LAU, PATRICK - Hong Kong Baptist University
item CHEN, TZU - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
item PITKETHLY, AMANDA - Hong Kong Baptist University

Submitted to: Biomedical and Environmental Sciences
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/10/2016
Publication Date: 3/30/2016
Citation: Wang, J.J., Baranowski, T., Lau, P.W., Chen, T.A., Pitkethly, A.J. 2016. Validation of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C) among Chinese Children. Biomedical and Environmental Sciences. 29(3):177-186.

Interpretive Summary: Due to possible language and cultural differences, questionnaires valid in the US may not be valid in China. Thus, validity needs to be established for use with youth in China. This study tested a Chinese translated and culturally adapted version of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C). Acceptable levels of validity and reliability were detected in this sample of 742 Hong Kong Chinese children. The PAQ-C can now be confidently utilized with Chinese children.

Technical Abstract: This study initially validates the Chinese version of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C), which has been identified as a potentially valid instrument to assess moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in children among diverse racial groups. The psychometric properties of the PAQ-C with 742 Hong Kong Chinese children were assessed with the scale’s internal consistency, reliability, test-retest reliability, confirmatory factory analysis (CFA) in the overall sample, and multistep invariance tests across gender groups as well as convergent validity with body mass index (BMI), and an accelerometry-based MVPA. The Cronbach alpha coefficient (alpha =0.79), composite reliability value (p=0.81), and the intraclass correlation coefficient (alpha =0.82) indicate the satisfactory reliability of the PAQ-C score. The CFA indicated data fit a single factor model, suggesting that the PAQ-C measures only one construct, on MVPA over the previous 7 days. The multiple-group CFAs suggested that the factor loadings and variances and covariances of the PAQ-C measurement model were invariant across gender groups. The PAQ-C score was related to accelerometry-based MVPA (r=0.33) and inversely related to BMI (r=-0.18). This study demonstrates the reliability and validity of the PAQ-C in Chinese children.