Validity and Reliability of the Inflammatory Arthritis Facilitators and Barriers to Physical Activity Questionnaire

Children and adolescents with rheumatic diseases can experience significant disability in both the short and long term due to pain, muscle weakness, fatigue, and restricted joint movement. Exercise training has been noted to potentially benefit individuals with pediatric rheumatic diseases by alleviating various clinical symptoms related to physical disability. In this regard, it is important to routinely assess and monitor physical inactivity and sedentary behaviors, along with examining behaviors that may hinder or facilitate physical activity. However, no tool has been encountered to assess behaviors that may hinder or facilitate physical activity in individuals with pediatric rheumatic disease. In this sense, the importance of examining physical activity barriers and facilitators in children with rheumatic disease is clear. The Inflammatory Arthritis Facilitators and Barriers to Physical Activity (IFAB) questionnaire was developed to assess perceived facilitators and barriers to physical activity in patients with inflammatory arthritis. For this purpose, the validity and reliability of the IFAB questionnaire in individuals with pediatric rheumatic diseases (juvenile idiopathic arthritis, juvenile fibromyalgia syndrome, juvenile dermatomyositis) will be examined. Under the supervision of a physical therapist, participants will be assessed using the IFAB questionnaire to evaluate perceived facilitators and barriers to physical activity, the Fear Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire - Physical Activity (FABQ-PA) questionnaire for fear-avoidance beliefs, and the Motivation Scale For Participation In Physical Activity (MSPPA) to measure motivation for physical activity participation. The results of the IFAB questionnaire will be utilized in the validity and reliability analysis, as well as in the analysis of construct validity. For reliability analysis, the IFAB questionnaire will be repeated after 7 days. All forms will be sent to children in Google form format. It is planned to include 70 children in this study. Factor analysis methods will be used in the analysis of the factor structure of the scale, correlation analyses (Pearson and Spearman coefficients) will be used in the analysis of validity and test-retest reliability. Cronbach's alpha analysis will be used in the reliability analysis. The study will be the first to examine physical activity barriers and facilitators in Turkish children with rheumatic disease. The results will contribute to the identification of physical activity barriers and facilitators in Turkish children with rheumatic diseases.