Psychometric Validation of Measures of Infertility-Related Psychological Distress and Psychosocial Factors among Pakistani Women

Abstract

Infertility is associated with substantial psychological and psychosocial challenges, particularly among women living in sociocultural contexts where motherhood is strongly emphasized. However, the psychometric performance of measures assessing multiple infertility-related psychological and psychosocial constructs requires careful evaluation within culturally specific populations, particularly among Pakistani women experiencing infertility. The present study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of measures assessing infertility-related psychological distress and associated psychosocial factors. Specifically, the study evaluated the internal consistency, factorial validity, and measurement quality of eight measures assessing societal and familial pressure, psychological distress, shame, religious coping, self-stigma, self-compassion, fear of rejection, and partner support. Data were obtained from 475 women experiencing infertility. A quantitative psychometric validation design was employed, and the measures were evaluated within the Pakistani cultural context. Internal consistency was examined using Cronbach’s alpha, mean inter-item correlations, and composite reliability, while construct validity was assessed through confirmatory factor analysis. The findings demonstrated high internal consistency across the measures, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients ranging from .868 to .990 and composite reliability coefficients ranging from .877 to .990. Societal and familial pressure demonstrated the comparatively lower reliability coefficient (α = .868), whereas the remaining measures demonstrated coefficients ranging from .974 to .990. The elevated reliability coefficients and mean inter-item correlations also indicated substantial item homogeneity across several measures, suggesting the possibility of overlapping or redundant items and warranting cautious interpretation of exceptionally high reliability estimates. Overall, the findings supported the psychometric evaluation of the selected measures while highlighting the importance of considering factorial structure and item homogeneity alongside conventional reliability estimates when assessing psychological instruments among Pakistani women experiencing infertility.