Measuring COVID-19-related fear and threat in Australian, Indian, and Nepali university students
<p>The present study describes the adaption and validation of a brief measure of contagion-related fear and threat in</p>
<p>Australian, Indian, and Nepali university students in Australia at the height of the first wave of the COVID-19</p>
<p>pandemic. Adapted from Ho, Kwong-Lo, Mak, and Wong’s (2005) SARS-related fear scale, the Contagion Fear</p>
<p>and Threat Scale (CFTS) was rapidly adapted to capture the experience of COVID-19 pandemic-related fear. The</p>
<p>factor structure and validity of the 6-item scale were established among Australian (n = 154), Indian (n = 111),</p>
<p>and Nepali (n = 149) university students studying in Australia in May–June 2020. Factor analysis revealed two 3-</p>
<p>item factors in the Australian student sample: Fear of Infection and Existential Threat. These factors were</p>
<p>confirmed in the Indian and Nepali student samples and mirror those found by the Ho et al. (2005) in their</p>
<p>original instrument. The convergent and discriminant validity of the full CFTS, Fear of Infection, and Existential</p>
<p>Threat scales are indicated via correlations with established measures of depression, anxiety, stress, subjective</p>
<p>wellbeing, and religiosity. Differences in the performance of the Fear of Infection and Existential Threat scales</p>
<p>are considered in terms of the respective objective and subjective nature of the constructs</p>
