Reliability and Factor structure of the General Health Questionnaire-12 among university students
- Author:
Normala Ibrahim
;
Zubaidah Jamil Osman
;
Khin Ohmar Naing Noor Jan
;
Siti Irma Fadhilah Ismail
;
Phang Cheng Kar
;
Firdaus Mukhtar
;
Sherina Mohd Sidik
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
GHQ-12, Bahasa Malaysia;
Reliability;
Factor Structure;
University Students
- MeSH:
Quality of Life;
Delivery of Health Care
- From:Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences
2014;10(2):53-60
- CountryMalaysia
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Introduction: The 12- item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) has been translated into many
languages and widely used in different settings and countries. Its reliability and psychometric properties
were extensively studied in many population groups which suggested that it measures psychological
distress in multidimensional construct. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the reliability
and factor structure of the Bahasa Malaysia version of the GHQ-12 among university students attending
a health program at a Malaysian public university. Method: The cross sectional survey was conducted
on 306 undergraduate students aged between 18 to 27 years old who visited the booth set up for mental
health screening at a health program. The screening was conducted using a self-administered, validated
Bahasa Malaysia version of GHQ-12 questionnaire. Results: Using exploratory factor analysis, the
Bahasa Malaysia version of GHQ-12 was found to have a three factor structures namely depressive
symptoms, self-esteem and perceived abilities which accounted for 58% of the item variance. The overall
Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the scale was found to be high (0.84) with each factor having acceptable
inter-item consistency ranging from 0.61 to 0.82. Conclusion: The findings of the study show that the
Bahasa Malaysia version GHQ-12 is reliable and has good structural characteristics. It can assess a few
domains of the psychological status of university students. It also helps in providing more information
on the domain which may become a focus target of intervention in the prevention of mental illness.
- Full text:P020150604528941693319.pdf
