To describe the translation and test of the Danish version of the original British 'Rheumatoid Arthritis Self-Efficacy Questionnaire' (RASE).
The questionnaire was forward and back translated by individuals with Danish and English as their respective primary languages. The questionnaire was tested by five lay-people and in the field by 10 + five persons with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). A test-retest was performed on 62 outpatients with RA. The sensitivity of the adapted Danish version of RASE (RASE-DK) was finally tested on 106 outpatients with RA - before, immediately after and three months after they had participated in a short self-management course performed by a multidisciplinary team.
RASE-DK showed good face validity, but 'relaxation' was interpreted in various ways. Internal consistency evaluated by Cronbach's alpha was 0.91. Reliability evaluated by the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.88. A Bland-Altman plot showed good agreement. RASE-DK, like the original English version of RASE, was not associated with disease activity (Disease Activity Score, DAS-28) or disability (Health Assessment Questionnaire, HAQ), and correlated significantly with the Arthritis Self-Efficacy Scale (ASES) subscales 'other' and 'pain', and total ASES. RASE-DK showed a highly significant change, from baseline to immediately after participation in the short course (p < 0.001). The effect faded during the following three months.
RASE-DK met the appropriate standards for validity, reliability and sensitivity, and is appropriate for use in Denmark. However, the concept of self-efficacy may be too abstract for a few individuals, and relaxation is interpreted in various ways by the Danish patients.