The psychometric properties and applicability of subjective cognitive measures used in menopause research: a systematic review
Authors:
He, L., Jaff, N. G., Kontaris, E., and Spector, A.
Abstract:
IMPORTANCE: Many midlife women report cognitive issues when they transition through menopause. These cognitive complaints affect women's mental health and quality of life. However, the current understanding of women's cognitive experiences during the menopause transition has been limited by the lack of validated self-reported cognitive measures.
OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aimed to identify existing self-reported, or subjective, cognitive measures used in menopause research and evaluate their psychometric properties and applicability.
EVIDENCE REVIEW: Three databases, Medline, Embase, and PsycINFO, were searched in March 2024 with no restriction on publication year. Studies investigating women transitioning into postmenopause and with cognitive experiences measured using validated subjective cognitive measures were selected. The assessment of psychometric properties and applicability of included measures was conducted based on their development process and their performance in the menopause studies selected.
FINDING: Twenty-eight menopause studies involving 15 measures were included. Included measures showed adequate content validity, internal consistency, and construct validity when they were developed, yet other psychometric properties were either poor or not reported. Hence, the overall performance of included measures was generally moderate to poor. Information relating to psychometric properties of included measures in menopause studies was also lacking, indicating doubtful applicability.
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Poor psychometric properties or the lack of psychometric assessment of existing subjective cognitive measures may indicate doubt or uncertainty regarding their applicability in women transitioning through menopause. This review recommends the use of subjective cognitive measures that assess more than one cognitive domain, as well as further assessment of the psychometric properties of these measures before their use in menopause research or clinical settings, particularly those measures initially developed for clinical practice. It also highlights the need for future development of a subjective cognitive measure for women transitioning through menopause to improve the current understanding of their cognitive challenges.