Development of a Family Support Scale for Diet Therapy for Male Workers with type 2 diabetes

Aim Dietary self-care for patients with type 2 diabetes can be improved with family support. The purpose of this study was to develop a scale to assess family support for diet therapy for male workers with type 2 diabetes and to examine its reliability and validity. Methods In this cross-sectional study, we collected data from 110 Japanese male workers with type 2 diabetes. Data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis, reliability testing, and validity testing. Results The resultant Family Support Scale for Diet Therapy for Male Workers (FSS-DMW) with type 2 diabetes consisted of 31 items and a six-factor structure. The six factors explained 72.9% of the variance, and Cronbach's alpha for the total scale was .964. The scale correlated as expected with the Social Support Scale for Chronic Illness and the dietary subscale of the Japanese version of the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities Measure. Conclusion The FSS-DMW is a reliable and valid measure which can be used to assess family support for diet therapy for male workers with type 2 diabetes and has the potential to be used as a clinical instrument for family guidance.