Measurement invariance of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) across four European countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Mark Shevlin1, Sarah Butter2, Orla McBride1, Jamie Murphy1, Jilly Gibson Miller2, Todd K. Hartman3, Liat Levita2, Liam Mason4, Anton Philipp Martinez2, Ryan McKay5, Thomas V A Stocks2, Kate Bennett6, Philip Hyland7, Frédérique Vallières8, Carmen Valiente9, Carmelo Vázquez9, Alba Contreras9, Vanesa Peinado9, Almudena Trucharte9, Marco Bertamini6, Anna Panzeri10, Giovanni Bruno10, Umberto Granziol10, Giuseppe Mignemi10, Andrea Spoto10, Giulio Vidotto10, Richard P. Bentall2
1Ulster University, Coleraine, Northern Ireland
2Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield, Cathedral Court, 1 Vicar Lane, S1 2LT, Sheffield, England
3University of Manchester, Manchester, England
4University College London, London, England
5Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, England
6University of Liverpool, Liverpool, England
7Maynooth University, Maynooth, Ireland
8Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
9Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
10University of Padua, Padua, Italy

Tóm tắt

Abstract Background

The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) are self-report measures of major depressive disorder and generalised anxiety disorder. The primary aim of this study was to test for differential item functioning (DIF) on the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 items based on age, sex (males and females), and country.

Method

Data from nationally representative surveys in UK, Ireland, Spain, and Italy (combined N = 6,054) were used to fit confirmatory factor analytic and multiple-indictor multiple-causes models.

Results

Spain and Italy had higher latent variable means than the UK and Ireland for both anxiety and depression, but there was no evidence for differential items functioning.

Conclusions

The PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores were found to be unidimensional, reliable, and largely free of DIF in data from four large nationally representative samples of the general population in the UK, Ireland, Italy and Spain.

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