Reliability, Validity and Factor Structure of the 12-Item General Health Questionnaire among General Population
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3889/oamjms.2015.075Keywords:
General Health Questionnaire, factor structure, reliability, psychological healthAbstract
AIM: The aim of the study is to analyze the internal consistency; validity and factor structure of the twelve item General Health Questionnaire for the Macedonian general population.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data came from nationally representative sample of 1603 randomly selected Macedonians all aged 18 years or older.
RESULTS: The mean GHQ score in the general sample was found to be 7.9 (SD = 4.3). The results revealed a higher GHQ score among women (M = 8.91, SD = 4.5) compared to men (M = 6.89; SD = 4.2). The participants from the rural areas obtained a lower GHQ score (M = 7.55, SD = 3.8) compared to participants coming from the urban areas (M = 9.37, SD = 4.1). The principal component analysis with oblique rotation (direct oblimin) with maximum likelihood procedure solution was performed and the results yielded a three factor solution which jointly accounted for 57.17% of the total variance: Factor I named social management (items 1, 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8); Factor II stress (items 2, 5 and 9) and Factor III named self-confidence (items 10, 11 and 12). Its factor structure is in line with representative research from other population groups.
CONCLUSION: The GHQ-12 can be used effectively for assessment of the overall psychological well-being and detection of non-psychotic psychiatric problems among the Macedonian population.Downloads
Metrics
Plum Analytics Artifact Widget Block
References
Demyttenaere K, Bruffaerts R, Posada-Villa J, Gasquet I, Kovess V, Lepine J, & Chatterji S. Prevalence, severity, and unmet need for treatment of mental disorders in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Surveys, 2013.
Goldberg DP, Hillier VF. A scaled version of the Geberal Health Questionnaire. Psychological Medicine. 1979; 9: 139-145. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291700021644
World Health Organization. WHO Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020, 2013. WHO web site http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=WHO+Mental+Health+Action+Plan+2013-202&btnG=&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&as_ylo=2013. Accessed at 19.10.2014.
Goldberg D, & Williams P. A users guide to the General Health Questionnaire. Windsor: NFER-Nelson, 1988.
Richard C, Lussier MT, Gagnon R, Lamarche L. GHQ-28 and cGHQ-28: implications of two scoring methods for the GHQ in a primary care setting. Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology. 2004; 39(3): 235-243. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-004-0710-3
Goldberg DP, Blackwell B. Psychiatric illness in general practice: a detailed study using a new method of case identification. British medical journal. 1970; 2(5707): 439. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.2.5707.439
Goldberg DP, Gater R, Sartorius N, Ustun TB, Piccinelli M, Gureje O, Rutter C. The validity of two versions of the GHQ in the WHO study of mental illness in general health care. Psychological medicine. 1997 ; 27(01): 191-197. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291796004242
Montazeri A, Harirchi AM, Shariati M, Garmaroudi G, Ebadi M, Fateh A. The 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): translation and validation study of the Iranian version. Health and quality of life outcomes. 2003; 1(1); 66. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-1-66
Araya R, Wynn R, Lewis G. Comparison of two self-administered psychiatric questionnaires (GHQ-12 and SRQ-20) in primary care in Chile.Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. 1992; 27(4):168-173. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00789001
Schmitz N, Kruse J, Tress W. Psychometric properties of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) in a German primary care sample. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. 1999; 100:462-468. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0447.1999.tb10898.x
López MPS, Dresch V. The 12-Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): reliability, external validity and factor structure in the Spanish population. Psicothema. 2008; 20(4): 839-843.
Pan PC, Goldberg D. A comparison of the validity of GHQ- 12 and CHQ-12 in Chinese primary care patients in Manchester. Psychol Med. 1990; 20:931–940. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S003329170003662X
Picardi A, Abeni D, Pasquini P. (2001). Assessing psychological distress in patients with skin diseases: reliability, validity and factor structure of the GHQâ€12. Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. 2001; 15(5):410-417. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1468-3083.2001.00336.x
Sriram TG, Chandrashekar CR, Isaac MK, Shanmugham V. The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. 1989; 24(6):317-320. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01788035
Malakouti SK, Fatollahi P, Mirabzadeh A, Zandi T. Reliability, validity and factor structure of the GHQ-28 used among elderly Iranians.International Psychogeriatrics. 2007; 19(04):623-634. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1041610206004522
Kalliath TJ, O’Driscoll MP, Brough P. A confirmatory factor analysis of the General Health Questionnaireâ€12. Stress and Health. 2004; 20(1):11-20. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.993
Swallow BL, Lindow SW, Masson EA, Hay DM. The use of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) to estimate prevalence of psychiatric disorder in early pregnancy. Psychology, health & medicine. 2003; 8(2):213-217. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1354850031000087591
Costa E, Barreto SM, Uchoa E, Firmo JO, Lima-Costa MF, Prince M. Is the GDS-30 better than the GHQ-12 for screening depression in elderly people in the community? The Bambui Health Aging Study (BHAS). International psychogeriatrics. 2006; 18(03):493-503. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1041610205002954
Corti L. For better or worse? Annual change in smoking, self-assessed health and subjective well-being. In: Buck N, Gershuny J, Rose D, Scott J (ed) In Changing Households: The British Household Panel Survey 1990–1992. Colchester: University of Essex, 1994:pp. 199–219.
Hankins M. The factor structure of the twelve item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): the result of negative phrasing?. Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health. 2008; 4(1):10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1745-0179-4-10
Gouveia VV, Lima TJSD, Gouveia RSV, Freires LA, Barbosa LHGM. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): the effect of negative items in its factorial structure. Cadernos de Saúde Pública. 2012; 28(2):375-384. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0102-311X2012000200016
Aguado J, Campbell A, Ascaso C, Navarro P, Garcia-Esteve L, Luciano JV. Examining the factor structure and discriminant validity of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) among Spanish postpartum women. Assesment. 2012; 19(4):517-25. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191110388146
Graetz B. Multidimensional properties of the general health questionnaire. Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology. 1991; 26(3):132-138. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00782952
Politi PL, Piccinelli M, Wilkinson G. Reliability, validity and factor structure of the 12â€item General Health Questionnaire among young males in Italy. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. 1994; 90(6):432-437. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0447.1994.tb01620.x
Martin AJ. Assessing the multidimensionality of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. Psychological reports. 1999; 84(3):927-935. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1999.84.3.927
Kuruvilla A, Pothen M, Philip K, Braganza D, Joseph A, Jacob KS. The validation of the Tamil version of the 12 item general health questionnaire. Indian journal of psychiatry. 1999; 41(3):217.
Cheung YB. A confirmatory factor analysis of the 12â€item General Health Questionnaire among older people. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. 202; 17(8):739-744. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.693
Ryan RM, Frederick CM. On energy, personality and health: subjective vitality as a dynamic reflection of well-being. Journal of Personality. 1997; 65:529-565.
Nix GA, Ryan RM, Manly JB, Deci EL. Revitalization through self-regulation: The effects of autonomous and controlled motivation on happiness and vitality. J Expl Soc Psych. 1999; 35:266-284.
Gao F, Luo N, Thumboo J, Fones C, Li SC, Cheung YB. Does the 12-item General Health Questionnaire contain multiple factors and do we need them?. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes. 2004; 2(1):63. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1477-7525-2-63
Ryan RM, Frederick CM. On energy, personality and health: subjective vitality as a dynamic reflection of well-being. Journal of Personality. 1997; 65:529-565. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1997.tb00326.x
Nix GA, Ryan RM, Manly JB, Deci EL. Revitalization through self-regulation: The effects of autonomous and controlled motivation on happiness and vitality. J Expl Soc Psych. 1999; 35:266-284. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/jesp.1999.1382
Minowa M. Factor structure of the 12â€item General Health Questionnaire in the Japanese general adult population. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences. 2003; 57(4):379-383. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-1819.2003.01135.x
Kihç C, Rezaki M, Rezaki B, Kaplan I, Özgen G, Sagduyu A, Özturk MO. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12 & GHQ28): psychometric properties and factor structure of the scales in a Turkish primary care sample. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. 1997; 32(6):327-331. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00805437
Werneke U, Goldberg DP, Yalcin I, Üstün BT. The stability of the factor structure of the General Health Questionnaire. Psychological medicine. 2000; 30(04):823-829. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291799002287
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0