Affiliations: [a]
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, North Oshawa, ON, Canada
| [b]
UOIT-CMCC Centre for Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation, Toronto, ON, Canada
| [c] Institute for Better Health, Trillium Health Partners, Mississauga, ON, Canada
| [d]
Canada Research Chair in Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, North Oshawa, ON, Canada
Correspondence:
[*]
Address for correspondence: Chelsea D’Silva, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, 2000 Simcoe Street, North Oshawa, ON L1H 7K4, Canada. E-mail: Chelsea.D’silva@uoit.ca.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Laptop use may be associated with poor health among University students. However, no psychometrically-sound instrument is available to measure biomechanical issues during laptop computer use in this population. OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the test-retest reliability of the Student Laptop Use and Musculoskeletal Posture (SLUMP) questionnaire among undergraduate University students. PARTICIPANTS:We invited 179 undergraduate students from two Health Sciences courses at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology to participate in the study in October 2015. METHODS:We conducted a test-retest reliability study. The SLUMP questionnaire, which includes 51 questions, was administered twice at a seven-day interval. We used weighted Kappa statistics to calculate test-retest reliability. RESULTS:Ninety-one students completed the study. 72.5% of the 51 questions achieved a Kw≥0.60 with 29.4% of questions achieving a Kw≥0.80. The reliability was similar for males and females. CONCLUSION:The SLUMP offers a promising method to measure biomechanical issues during laptop use among University students.
