Semantic validation of the short versions of the Empathy-Systemizing Quotient Scales

ABSTRACT Objective: to perform the semantic validation of the short versions of the Empathy-Systemizing Quotient Scales, intended to measure the empathetic and systemizing profiles of individuals. The scales originated in Cambridge and were validated in Portugal, and were assessed for their psychometric properties. Method: methodological study included the scales’ semantic validation (content validity) and verification of their psychometric properties (internal consistency). Five judges participated in the semantic validation. The Content Validity Index was calculated, a pretest was conducted with 18 undergraduate nursing students, and, finally, the scales were applied to a sample. Results: the sample was composed of 215 undergraduate nursing students, 186 (86.51%) of whom were women aged 21 years old, on average. The scales presented good internal consistency with global Cronbach’s alphas equal to 0.83 and 0.79 for the Empathy Quotient and the Systemizing Quotient, respectively. Correlations between the scales and subscales of the Empathy Quotient and Systemizing Quotient were all positive and significant according to the Pearson correlation coefficient. Conclusion: the scales are reliable and valid to measure the empathetic and systemizing profile of undergraduate nursing students and the final version was named “versões curtas das Escalas de Medição do Quociente de Empatia/Sistematização - Brasil” [short versions of the Empathy-Systemizing Quotient Scales - Brazil].

From an empathetic perspective, the focus is on the person's mental state that includes this emotion. If an individual presents a very low level of emotion, it may be she has some mental disorder, such as autism, and it is a simple way to explain social and communicative obstacles, while a high level of systemizing is expressed through repetitive behaviors and resistance against the new. Therefore, while empathetic individuals are emotionally concerned with others, systematic people are concerned with their emotional control and their own interests (3,10) . In this phase, we conducted Face and Content Validity to assess semantic, experiential, idiomatic and conceptual equivalences. Five judges collaborated in the study: three Brazilian nurses, one Portuguese nurse, one internationalist, and one lawyer. All of these had teaching experience and were fluent in both languages.
They classified the items in the questionnaire as being appropriate or not appropriate, and the Content Validity Index (CVI) was calculated. The items with CVI equal to 100% were definitively kept in the questionnaire. The items with a CVI index lower than 80% were changed and reassessed by the judges, who agreed with all the changes implemented (13) .
The scales were then pretested with 18 undergraduate nursing students during a meeting, simulating the expected conditions of future application.
The students received clarification regarding the purpose of the pretest and after they finished completing the questionnaires, they were encouraged to verbalize their doubts. No changes were suggested, so the scales
The scales presented global Cronbach's alphas equal to 0.83, for the Empathy Quotient, and 0.79 for the Systemizing Quotient (Table 1).
The Cronbach's alpha values revealed reasonable internal consistency for the EQ factors, low internal consistency for the SQ factor "Contents", and reasonable internal consistency for the SQ factor "Processes".
Comparison between the factors found in the short version validated by the Portuguese researchers and that were validated in Brazil returned similar results (1,12) .

Conclusion
The short versions of the Empathy-Systemizing Quotient Scales -Brazil are valid and reliable to measure the empathetic and systemizing profile of undergraduate nursing students. These scales can be applied separately because they are independent. A limitation of this study is that it was conducted in a single institution and with a single population. Future studies should test the scales' psychometric properties in other Brazilian populations.