International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care
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Int J Qual Health Care · Aug 1999
Meta AnalysisHow valid and reliable are patient satisfaction data? An analysis of 195 studies.
To assess the properties of validity and reliability of instruments used to assess satisfaction in a broad sample of health service user satisfaction studies, and to assess the level of awareness of these issues among study authors. ⋯ With few exceptions, the study instruments in this sample demonstrated little evidence of reliability or validity. Moreover, study authors exhibited a poor understanding of the importance of these properties in the assessment of satisfaction. Researchers must be aware that this is poor research practice, and that lack of a reliable and valid assessment instrument casts doubt on the credibility of satisfaction findings.