Validation of the Persian Version of the Social Capital Questionnaire in Recreational-Sports Clubs

Considering the importance of the social capital subject and its unique role in the context of a multifaceted phenomenon such as sports that can underpin various interdisciplinary studies and be of interest to researchers, the necessity of having a valid and reliable instrument matching the context of sports is increasingly felt. Therefore, this study aimed at determining the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the Social Capital Questionnaire in recreational-sports clubs by Forsell, Tower, and Polman (2018). The methodology of this study is descriptive-survey, and in terms of purpose, it is an applied study. The power-based sample size estimation was performed using SPSS Sample Power software. Indices such as confirmatory factor analysis based on structural equation modeling were used to evaluate the validity and reliability of the tool. In addition, maximum and average shared variance (for discriminant validity), average variance extracted (for convergent validity), and Cronbach's alpha and combined reliability (to estimate internal consistency and component reliability) were used. The results of all indices showed the desirable evaluation of the instrument in the sport context. In other words, empirical data supported the theoretical model of research. Therefore, it is recommended that the Persian version of the Social Capital questionnaire in the sports context can be used as a suitable tool for studying and evaluating the social capital in sports.