Psychometric Evaluation of a Physical Literacy Assessment for Older Adults: Rasch Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis

Addressing the lack of high-quality physical literacy instruments for older adults, the goal of this study was to examine the validity and reliability of the Physical Literacy Assessment for Older Adults (PLAOA), which was previously developed through a Delphi study. A sample of 380 older adults completed the Senior Fitness Test, self-reported questionnaires, and accelerometer (ActiGraph) measurements. After removal of misfitting items, the initial PLAOA contained 37 items. Construct validity was supported through (1) Rasch analyses confirming the unidimensionality of the subdomains (0.1%–14.9% unexplained variance, eigenvalue < 2); (2) a strong correlation with the Senior Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument (r = 0.81, p <.001); (3) satisfactory confirmatory factor analyses (χ2/df = 1.911, CFI = 0.940, TLI = 0.935, RMSEA = 0.049, SRMR = 0.052); and (4) good internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha of 0.80. Additionally, good test-retest reliability was demonstrated. This study has provided preliminary evidence of the validity and reliability of the PLAOA to better understand physical literacy and active aging in adults.