Adapting the AIR Self-Determination and Promotion of Autonomous Decision-Making Scales: An Exploratory Study Among Young Adults with Disabilities

To ensure full participation of people with disabilities in research, accessibility of the instruments employed is essential. This paper describes an exploratory research which included the adaptation of the AIR Self-Determination Scale and the Promotion of Autonomous Decision-Making Scale. The adaptation was designed to enable Hebrew-speaking young adults with physical disability, autism, psychosocial disability, complex learning disabilities, deafness or hearing impairment, or blindness or visual impairment, to complete a self-report questionnaire. It included extensive wording simplifications. In addition, original Likert scales were reduced, and symbols were added to improve accessibility. The forms were modified to a coloured format with more visible headings, including use of a screen reader and additional visual adaptations. The adaptation process included three phases: questionnaire adaptation, examination of face and content validity, and a reliability assessment of the final version. The process was informed by input from young adults with disabilities. We conclude that simplified language, symbols, and visual effects should be considered when adapting questionnaires for people with disabilities. In addition, consulting with individuals with disabilities as experts by experience, should be integral to the adaptation of instruments.