Validity and Reliability Analysis of the Household Water Insecurity Experiences Scale: The Case of Argentina

The objective is to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Household Water Insecurity Experiences (HWISE) Scale as a tool to assess the experiences of households and the Argentine population regarding insecurity of access to water. Addressing water insecurity is critical for advancing several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), and SDG 1 (No Poverty), given the strong links between access to safe water, health, and poverty reduction. The scale was administered as part of the Argentine Social Debt Survey (EDSA), on a probabilistic sample of 5799 households. The HWISE Scale demonstrated high reliability both overall and at the item level (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.95 at a total level and greater than 0.94 for each of the items) and criterion validity in terms of correlation with a broad set of indicators: social deprivations, sanitary infrastructure, food insecurity, and psychological health. Finally, the scale showed internal consistency, with a total omega coefficient value of 0.96, suggesting that all scale indicators refer to the same concept of deprivation in water access. In sum, the HWISE Scale applied to the case of Argentina is deemed appropriate for estimating household water insecurity.