A new shoulder instability test is reported to have a specificity of 0.88. This indicates a high percentage of which outcome?

A new shoulder instability test is reported to have a specificity of 0.88. This indicates a high percentage of which outcome?

• A. true positives
• B. false positives
• C. true negatives
• D. false negatives

Answer: (C)

Specificity is the proportion of people without the condition who test negative. With a specificity of 0.88, 88% of individuals who do not have shoulder instability will have a negative result, meaning they are true negatives. The remaining 12% would be false positives. This high specificity also means that a positive test result is more helpful for confirming instability (ruling in the disease), while sensitivity would relate to how well the test detects those who actually have the condition. So the high percentage outcome described by the specificity value is true negatives.

Specificity is the proportion of people without the condition who test negative. With a specificity of 0.88, 88% of individuals who do not have shoulder instability will have a negative result, meaning they are true negatives. The remaining 12% would be false positives. This high specificity also means that a positive test result is more helpful for confirming instability (ruling in the disease), while sensitivity would relate to how well the test detects those who actually have the condition. So the high percentage outcome described by the specificity value is true negatives.