Psychiatry Investig.  2021 Apr;18(4):332-339. 10.30773/pi.2020.0420.

The Korean Version of Fear of COVID-19 Scale: Psychometric Validation in the Korean Population

• Hwang KS
• Choi HJ
• Yang CM
• Hong J
• Lee HJ
• Park MC
• Jang SH
• Lee SY

• KMID: 2515118
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2020.0420

Abstract

Objective
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has psychological effects such as anxiety and depression as well as direct infection in people. The Fear of COVID-19 scale is a scale that can measure anxiety related to COVID-19 in a short time. The purpose of this study was to verify the reliability and validity the Korean version of Fear of COVID-19 scale (KF-COVID-19S).
Methods
The data of total 186 normal adults and 17 patients were finally used for the statistical analysis. For internal consistency, Cronbach’s α was calculated. For concurrent and discriminant validity, the correlations with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS), Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15), World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment Instrument Brief Form (WHOQOLBREF) were analyzed. For construct validity, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted.
Results
Cronbach alpha was 0.88. The two-factor model (factor 1: Physical fear, factor 2: Emotional fear) showed significantly positive correlations and appeared to be “good” fitness (CFI=0.906, IFI=0.907, NFI=0.902).
Conclusion
The KF-COVID-19S can be a useful scale that can measure the physical and emotional fears associated with COVID-19 in a short time. Because the psychiatric patients are a more vulnerable group to the fear, it is thought that the KF-COVID-19S will help to determine the patient’s level of anxiety and make a therapeutic plan for the underlying mental disorder.

Keyword

COVID-19, Coronavirus, Fear, Anxiety, COVID-19 fear