To evaluate the test-retest reliability and responsiveness of the 15-item and 5-item forms of the Empowerment in Audiology Questionnaire (EmpAQ measures).
✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
Both EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5 show acceptable test-retest reliability and responsiveness; clinicians can consider adopting either version to routinely track patient empowerment as an outcome measure in audiology practice.
Patient-centred outcome measurement is increasingly expected in audiology; validated short-form tools like the EmpAQ-5 lower the barrier to capturing empowerment data in busy clinics.
- 01Both the 15-item (EmpAQ-15) and 5-item (EmpAQ-5) versions of the questionnaire were tested for reliability and sensitivity to change.
- 02Test-retest reliability was assessed in a clinical audiology population, confirming scores are stable when patients' status has not changed.
- 03Responsiveness analysis confirmed the tools can detect meaningful shifts in patient empowerment over time.
- 04The short 5-item version offers a practical option for time-limited clinical settings.
- 05Published ahead of print in International Journal of Audiology.
The EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5 demonstrate acceptable test-retest reliability in a clinical audiology population.
studysupportedBoth EmpAQ versions are responsive to genuine changes in patient empowerment over time.
studysupported- PMID
- 42773612
- DOI
- 10.1080/14992027.2026.2732708.
- Journal
- International Journal of Audiology
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 2b
- Population
- Clinical audiology patients
- Intervention
- Administration of the EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5 empowerment questionnaires
Primary outcomes
Test-retest reliability of EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5; Responsiveness (sensitivity to change) of EmpAQ-15 and EmpAQ-5