Table 6. Internal consistency reliability and scale scores.
| Item | Scale/item description | Cronbach’s Alpha | Mean±SD score |
Median (IQR)a score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scale 1: TRUST | 0.821b | 2.83±0.896 | 2.75 (1.250) | |
| 12 | “I would trust more a brand name than a generic medicine” | 0.876 | 2.18±1.082 | 2 (2) |
| 13 | “I would trust more a doctor who would prescribe me a brand-name rather than a generic medicine” | 0.794 | 3.06±1.114 | 3 (2) |
| 16 | “Generic medicines have more undesirable effects (side-effects) than brand name medicines” | 0.766 | 3.20±1.074 | 3 (1) |
| 20 | “I would be worried if my medication was changed from brand-name to generic” | 0.885 | 2.88±1.153 | 3 (2) |
| Scale 2: Drug quality | 0.805b | 2.71±0.938 | 2.67 (1.333) | |
| 4 | “The potency of generic and brand name medications is the same” | 0.843 | 2.45±1.104 | 2 (1) |
| 5 | “The safety of generic and brand name medications is the same” | 0.898 | 2.74±1.096 | 3 (2) |
| 6 | “The production standards of generic and brand name medications are the same” | 0.915 | 2.94±1.116 | 3 (2) |
| Scale 3: State audit | 0.847b | 3.19±0.993 | 3.33 (1.333) | |
| 17 | “The Greek authorities are able to detect possible irregularities in the production of generic medicines” | 0.956 | 3.35±1.165 | 4 (1) |
| 18 | “The Greek authorities are able to detect in time and retract batches of generic drugs with reduced potency and/or safety” | 0.958 | 3.35±1.141 | 4 (1) |
| 19 | “In case of ineffectiveness of Greek authorities, European authorities are capable of detecting possible irregularities in potency and/or safety of generic medicines in the Greek market. | 0.880 | 2.88±1.064 | 3 (2) |
| Scale 4: Fiscal impact | 0.655b | 2.29±0.855 | 2.33 (1) | |
| 7 | “The price of generic medications is considerably lower than brand name medications” | 0.814 | 1.86±1.018 | 2 (1) |
| 10 | “I believe that the use of generic medicines will reduce any relationships between doctors and pharmaceutical companies against the rules” | 0.855 | 2.83±1.251 | 3 (2) |
| 11 | “I believe that the use of generic medicines will reduce the total cost of therapy” | 0.886 | 2.18±1.051 | 2 (2) |
| Scale 5: Knowledge | 0.777b | 1.57±0.712 | 1.33 (1) | |
| 1 | “I know what generic medications are” | 0.919 | 1.53±0.822 | 1 (1) |
| 2 | “I know the difference between generics and brand name medications” | 0.934 | 1.53±0.777 | 1 (1) |
| 3 | “A brand name and a generic medication contain the same active substance” | 0.855 | 1.65±0.959 | 1 (1) |
| Scale 6: Drug substitution | 0.719b | 3.89±1.079 | 4 (2) | |
| 8 | “Substitution of brand-name with generic medicines can also be done by pharmacists” | 0.942 | 3.54±1.348 | 4 (3) |
| 9 | “Substitution of brand-name with generic medicines should only be done by doctors” | 0.924 | 4.23±1.080 | 5 (1) |
a IQR, Interquartile range
b Cronbach’s alpha for summary scale