Validation of Collett-Lester Fear of Death Scale in a mexican university nursing students

Abstract

Introduction. The original Collett-Lester Fear of Death Scale (CLFDS), translated into Spanish, has not been validated in the Mexican population. Since death has a different perspective for Mexicans compared to individuals from other cultures, it is important to inquire into its validation. The objective of this article is to determine the validity of CLFDS in the Mexican university population. Methodology. Psychometric and cross-sectional design, simple random sampling. The responses of 368 nursing students were analyzed. Results. The female gender predominated (90.2%), age equal to 21.0±3. The CLFDS obtained a reliability of 0.95. Scores on the dimensions of own death, compared to the death of others, are lower (X =2.8±0.56 vs X =3.5±0.53). The process of own death compared to the death of others, is no different (X =3.2± 0.46 vs X =3.2±0.34). Factor analysis with the varimax rotation method supported the content validity of the original scale, despite the fact that the two-dimensional reagents were regrouped without losing any of their elements. Conclusions. The Spanish version of the CLFDS is valid and reliable in mexican university students; however, it needs to be replicated in other socio-cultural contexts in Mexico.