Validation of the Caregiver Mealtime and Dysphagia Questionnaire (CMDQ)

The purpose of this study was to validate the Caregiver Mealtime and Dysphagia Questionnaire (CMDQ). The validation procedures included the following: (a) assessment of internal consistency reliability, (b) testing of approximations to normality, and (c) assessments of convergent and discriminant validity. Study participants were 85 noncompliant and 50 compliant caregivers. Factor analytical techniques revealed three interpretable scales: Quality of Life (QOL), Disagreement with the SLP (DSLP), and Avoidance (AV). All scales were internally consistent. The QOL and DSLP scales showed evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. The AV scale evidenced a floor effect, limiting its discriminating power.