Development and validation of the EspaiJove.net mental health literacy (EMHL) test for spanish adolescents
Author
Castellví Obiols, Pere
Casañas, Rocío
Mailen Arfuch, Victoria
Gil Moreno, Juan José
Torres Torres, María
García-Forero, Carlos
Ruiz-Castañeda, Dyanne
Alonso, Jordi
Lalucat-Jo, Lluís
Publication date
2020ISSN
1660-4601
Abstract
There is evidence of the effectiveness of implementing mental health literacy (MHL) programs. However, there are substantial limitations in the instruments available for measuring MHL. This study aimed to develop and validate the EspaiJove.net MHL test (EMHL) for Spanish adolescents by assessing its psychometric properties. The development of the EMHL test was conducted using item pool generation and a pilot study. A convenience sample of students aged 13–15 years (n = 355) participated in the validity study. Reliability was assessed for internal consistency and via test-retest. Convergent validity was evaluated by comparing the effect sizes among known groups with different levels of mental health knowledge, the correlation with mental health-related instruments, and the item discrimination index. A final version of a 35-item EMHL test was obtained with two parts: (i) a binary choice format (yes/no) for the identification of mental disorders; (ii) a multiple choice question with four possible answer options. Internal consistency was acceptable in the first part (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.744; Guttman’s lambda 2 = 0.773) and almost acceptable in the second part (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.615; Guttman’s lambda 2 = 0.643). The test-retest evaluation supported the stability of the test (first part, ICC = 0.578; second part, ICC = 0.422). No ceiling and floor effects were found. The EMHL test scores discriminated between known groups with different levels of mental health knowledge and it is associated with several-related constructs of MHL. Conclusions: The EMHL test is a relevant measure for assessing MHL in adolescents into Spanish context with acceptable validity and stability.
Document Type
Article
Document version
Published version
Language
English
Subject (CDU)
159.9 - Psychology
Keywords
Alfabetització en salut mental
Salut mental
Adolescència
Alfabetización en salud mental
Salud mental
Adolescencia
Mental health literacy
Mental health
Mental health
Pages
13
Publisher
MDPI
Collection
17; 1
Is part of
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Citation
Castellvi, Pere; Casañas, Rocío; Mailen Arfuch, Victoria [et al.]. Development and validation of the EspaiJove.net mental health literacy (EMHL) test for spanish adolescents. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2020, 17(1), 72. Disponible en: <https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/1/72>. Fecha de acceso: 14 sep. 2021. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17010072
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- Ciències de la Salut [738]
Rights
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/