Development of the BACKIE questionnaire: a measure of children's behaviors, attitudes, cognitions, knowledge, and injury experiences.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to develop a standardized questionnaire (BACKIE) that would assess the Behaviors (B), Attitudes (A), Cognitions (C), Knowledge (K), and Injury Experiences (IE) that elementary-school children possess pertaining to seven types of injuries, including: falls; motor vehicle collisions; burns; drowning; choking/suffocation; poisoning; and bicycle/pedestrian injuries.

METHODS: Over 500 children in grades two through seven completed the questionnaire, with a sub-sample repeating it two months later to assess test-retest reliability of the measure.

RESULTS: Psychometric assessment of the instrument revealed acceptable internal and test-retest reliabilities and results of a Confirmatory Factor Analysis provided support for the hypothesized factor structure.

CONCLUSION: Having a psychometrically sound measure that allows one to assess attitudes, cognitions, and knowledge is an essential first step to exploring the relative influence of these factors on children's risk and safety practices.