---
title: Does the Chinese version of the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire work as well as English?
description: Yes, mostly. Most items translated equivalently between English and Chinese, though some items could be improved further.
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/translation-of-questionnaires-and-issues-of-equivalence-1999/
---

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- Does the Chinese version of the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire work as well as English?

Survey study, 1999

# Does the Chinese version of the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire work as well as English?

Yes, mostly. Most items translated equivalently between English and Chinese, though some items could be improved further.

 Early or limited evidence

Bilingual university students

## What they did

Researchers translated the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire into Chinese using forward and back-translation methods. Bilingual university students completed both the English and Chinese versions to check if they produced equivalent results.

## What they found

Most items showed acceptable agreement between the English and Chinese versions. Total questionnaire scores and all subscales demonstrated moderate to high levels of equivalence across languages.

## What it means for you

The Chinese version of the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire can be used in research with Chinese-speaking women because it measures the same concepts as the English version. Some items still need translation refinement. The main limit is that only university students participated, so results may differ in a more diverse population.

>0.4

Kappa acceptance level for items

Moderate-to-high

Equivalence for total scores

## About the study

Original title Translation of questionnaires and issues of equivalence Authors Chang AM, Chau JP, Holroyd E Journal Journal of advanced nursing Year 1999 Study design Survey study What was tested Translation validation study Read the paper [doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.1999.00891.x](https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2648.1999.00891.x)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Students and academic performance](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-education/)[Stigma, attitudes and culture](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-stigma-culture/)

Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits.

Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor.

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