The Starkstein Apathy Scale-Italian Version: An Update

J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol. 2024 Sep;37(5):379-386. doi: 10.1177/08919887241227404. Epub 2024 Jan 17.

Abstract

Apathy can manifest in various neuropsychiatric conditions, as well as in individuals who experience significant stressful life events or suffer from underlying internal medical conditions. The Starkstein Apathy Scale (SAS) is recognized as a reliable screening tool, besides being endorsed by the International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society to assess apathy in patients with Parkinson's disease. Recently, the Italian version of this scale (SAS-I) has been introduced. Furthermore, normative data have been provided on a large sample of Italian healthy individuals. Here we present the official Italian translation of the SAS, along with clarifications regarding its administration. Also, we supply details concerning the scale's factorial structure, inter-item conditional associations and item performance by using EFA, Network analysis, and IRT modelling for polytomous items.

Keywords: apathy; construct validity; item response theory; network analysis; psychometrics; starkstein apathy scale.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Apathy*
  • Factor Analysis, Statistical
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Italy
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Parkinson Disease* / psychology
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / standards
  • Psychometrics / instrumentation
  • Psychometrics / standards
  • Reproducibility of Results