Abstract
Background and Aim: Couples’ sexual communication is one of the contributing factors to the quality of couples’ sexual relationships. The aim of the present study was to psychometrically evaluate the Persian version of the Dyadic Sexual Communication Scale (DSCS) among married women of reproductive age.
Methods: In this psychometric study, translation was carried out using the back-translation method. The validity of the final version of the DSCS was performed using confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis. Concurrent validity was examined using the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI), Female Sexual Distress Scale (FSDS) and Marital Intimacy Scale (MIS). Reliability was assessed by calculating Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Data analysis was performed using SPSS and Mplus software.
Results: The participants comprised 400 married women with a mean age of 35.66 years living in Qazvin, Iran. Construct validity was confirmed based on confirmatory factor analysis (χ2[df]: 113.49 (65), Tucker-Lewis index: 0.980, Composite Reliability: 0.87, SRMSR: 0.065, RMSEA: 0.043, CFI: 0.983. Concurrent validity was analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficients, and the DSCS was positively correlated with scores on the MIS (r=.64) and FSFI (r=.65) and negatively correlated with scores on the FSDS (r=-.61). The internal reliability of the Persian DSCS was very good (Cronbach’s alpha=.88).
Conclusion: Based on psychometric testing, the Persian DSCS has good validity and reliability. Therefore, the tool can be used to assess women’s sexual communication in the context of sexual relationships. Future research should include males and compare and contrast results with females.
