Validation of the Experiencing Day-to-Day Life Questionnaire (EDLQ-old): assessing objective and subjective participation of community-dwelling older adults

In recent decades, substantial increases in life expectancy have led to a growing population of individuals aged 65 and older, emphasizing the importance of promoting healthy aging. Participation in daily activities is a key factor in healthy aging and quality of life (QoL) of older adults. This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Experiencing Day-to-Day Life Questionnaire (EDLQ-old), which assesses objective and subjective participation in community-dwelling older adults. A cross-sectional design evaluated the psychometric properties of the EDLQ-old, which assesses older adults’ engagement in activities across seven categories known to promote physical and mental health, using four scales (frequency, satisfaction, importance, and competence). Community-dwelling older adults aged 65 and older were recruited in Israel between July 2021 and February 2023 using convenience sampling. The questionnaire’s internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega. Construct validity was examined through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and known-groups validity. Pearson’s correlations were used to examine convergent validity between the EDLQ-old, the World Health Organization’s QoL - BREF (WHOQoL) questionnaire, and the EDLQ-old and the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS). The study sample included 502 community-dwelling older adults with a mean age of 75.07 years (SD = 7.90). The EDLQ-old demonstrated acceptable to excellent internal consistency and reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega coefficients ranging from 0.705 to 0.830. CFA confirmed the four-factor structure of the EDLQ-old, representing objective (frequency) and subjective (satisfaction, importance, competence) aspects of participation, indicating an acceptable goodness of fit [χ²(303) = 658.463, p < 0.001; CFI = 0.954; SRMR = 0.048; RMSEA = 0.048; and TLI = 0.942]. The EDLQ-old effectively discriminated between older adults with and without long-term health problems, with significantly higher mean scores in activity frequency, satisfaction, and competence for the latter group. Convergent validity was supported by the significant positive correlations between the EDLQ-old and WHOQoL ( r = 0.342–0.665) and EMAS ( r = 0.480–0.558). The EDLQ-old is a reliable and valid tool for assessing participation in daily activities among community-dwelling older adults. It provides valuable insights into the objective and subjective dimensions of participation, contributing to a deeper understanding of its role in older adults’ health and QoL.