Persian Adaptation of Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale: A Psychometric Analysis

Abstract

The validity and psychometric properties of a new Persian adaptation of the Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale were investigated. The scale was translated into Persian and administered to 160 undergraduate students (131 women, 29 men; M age = 23.4 yr., SD = 4.3). Rasch model analysis on the scale's original 20 items revealed that the data do not fit the partial credit model. Principal components analysis identified three factors: one related to feelings of anxiety about reading, the second reflected the reverse-worded items, and the third related to general ideas about reading in a foreign language. In a re-analysis, the 12 items that loaded on the first factor showed a good fit with the partial credit model.