Refinement and revalidation of the demoralization scale: The DS-II—external validity

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The recently refined Demoralization Scale-II (DS-II) is a 16-item, self-report measure of demoralization. Its 2 factors—Meaning and Purpose and Distress and Coping Ability—demonstrate sound internal validity, including item fit, unidimensionality, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. The convergent and discriminant validity of the DS-II with various measures is reported here. METHODS: Patients who had cancer or other progressive diseases and were receiving palliative care (n = 211) completed a battery of questionnaires, including the DS-II and measures of symptom burden, quality of life, depression, and attitudes toward the end of life. Spearman ρ correlations were ..