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ability to inform patients in plain language. Furthermore, recruitment information was provided in plain written Dutch and Turkish language. The information material included a compact disc on which the written information was recorded in spoken language, so patients would be able to hear the information as well as read it. During the course of the study one hundred and forty eligible patients were invited. Forty-two Turkish and forty-eight Dutch patients were unwilling to participate due to different reasons such as lack of interest, energy and time and ‘feeling too ill’. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in this study using a plain language consent form and verbal explanation. Data collection In accordance with respondents’ preferences interviews took place at respondents’ homes or at the physical therapy practice. Interviews were audio taped unless the respondent did not permit that, which occurred in six cases. In these cases the researcher took notes. In case of a language barrier the help of a professional interpreter was called in by telephone. In four cases respondents refused working with a professional interpreter. One of these four respondents asked her husband to act as an interpreter. For each interview the same procedure was followed: ObservedbyresearcherMW,whoconductedallinterviews,respondents completed the PSC without receiving any help or instruction. The aim of the PSC is described by its developers as follows: The PSC is focused on activities that an individual patient selects as main complaints. It is essential that patients select activities that their physical condition made difficult for them, that are important for daily living, and that are difficult to avoid \[29\]. The PSC contains four sections. The first section comprises a list of suggestions of physical activities in which one can be limited. Patients are allowed to select from or add activities to this list that apply to their situation. In section two a maximum of five activities of section one are selected. These should be the activities which the patient wishes to improve first. In section three the three most important activities of section two are selected and prioritized. In section four, the current difficulty to carry out these three activities is rated on an eleven point Numeric Rating Scale (0 – 10; 0 stands for no effort at all and 10 for every effort imaginable). During observation of completion of the PSC the researcher took Perceived ease of use and usefulness 31 2