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Abstract
To evaluate whether the WHOQOL-BREF measures the QOL construct in the same way across nations.
Students from Flanders, Belgium and Iran completed the WHOQOL-BREF as part of a larger Quality of Life questionnaire. Their responses were compared using a multi-group confirmatory factor analysis.
In general, the QOL construct appears rather similar in both cultures; however, participants from both countries seem to respond differently to particular items of the WHOQOL-BREF. Especially for the physical and psychological domain, this is problematic, because none of their indicators works in the same way across samples.
Notwithstanding some limitations of this study, it must be concluded that the WHOQOL-BREF should only be used with great caution in cross-national comparisons.[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]