Cultural adaptation and validation of the Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men (ATLG) scale among Peruvian physicians

Objective: To perform the cultural adaptation and validation of the Chilean Spanish version of the Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men (ATLG) scale among Peruvian physicians. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional and instrumental study was conducted in two phases: i) Cultural adaptation through the judgment by eight experts, and ii) Administering the instrument to 221 self-declared heterosexual Peruvian physicians working in a specialty with direct contact with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender population. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed, and sample adequacy and adjustment were assessed. Internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, reliability was assessed using test-retest, and convergent validity was examined using Pearson’s correlation with the Modern Homonegativity Scale (MHS). Results: Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a two-domain structure and the following adjustment indexes: Chi-square probability ratio = 1008.150 (p < 0.001); Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.942; Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) = 0.926; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) = 0.085 (90% CI: 0.063-0.106). The global Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.90, the intra-class correlation coefficient was 0.71, and Pearson correlation with the MHS was 0.58. Conclusion: The adapted ATLG scale to be used by Peruvian physicians is an instrument with adequate psychometric properties for assessing attitudes towards gay men and lesbian women.