Development of flood fear scale and investigation of psychometric properties

This study aimed to develop a flood fear scale. The study was designed as a methodological and cross-sectional study. The study was conducted with 1158 participants aged 18–65 residing in Türkiye’s Black Sea Region between February 15, 2025, and May 15, 2025. SPSS 25 and Amos 21 programs were used to analyze the data. The flood fear scale consists of four dimensions and 26 items. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.948, and the scale explained 62.644% of the total variance. The model fit indices were χ2/ df = 3.444, RMSEA = 0.065, SRMR = 0.056, CFI = 0.921, IFI = 0.922, NFI = 0.893, and TLI = 0.912. The findings indicated that the flood fear scale provided valid and reliable for adults aged 18–65 residing in Türkiye’s Black Sea Region. The total scores obtainable from the scale range from 26 to 130, with higher scores indicating an increased level of flood fear. Scale can be used to assess flood fear in community-based disaster risk reduction efforts. It is recommended that validity and reliability studies of the scale be conducted in different cultures and geographical regions.