Camilla Thelin1,2, Benjamin Mikkelsen1,2, Gunnar Laier3, Louise Turgut4, Bente Henriksen5, Lis Raabaek Olsen6, Jens Knud Larsen7, Sidse Arnfred1,2. 1. a Psychiatry West , Region Zealand Mental Health Services, University Hospital Copenhagen , Slagelse , Denmark. 2. b Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health , University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen , Denmark. 3. c Research & Development, Production , Research & Innovation, Region Zealand , Soroe , Denmark. 4. d Department M, Sct. Hans Mental Hospital , Roskilde , Denmark. 5. e Psychotherapeutic Unit, Mental Health Center Ballerup , Ballerup , Denmark. 6. f Adolescent Outpatient Unit, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Center, Mental Health Services , Glostrup , Denmark. 7. g Department Q , Aarhus University Hospital , Risskov , Denmark.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Psychological distress is a trans-diagnostic feature of mental suffering closely associated with mental disorders. Kessler's 10-item Psychological Distress Scale (K10), a scale with sound psychometric properties, is widely used in epidemiological studies. AIM: To translate and investigate whether K10 is a reliable and valid rating scale for the measurement of psychological distress in a Danish population. METHODS: The translation was carried out according to official WHO translation guidelines. A sample of 100 subjects was included, 54 patients from the regional Mental Health Service (MHS) and 46 subjects with no psychiatric history. All participants were assessed with a psychiatric diagnostic interview (MINI) and handed out K10. Concurrent validity was assessed by WHO Well-being Index (WHO-5). Correlation matrix analysis was conducted for the full sample and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for discriminating mental health service affiliation. RESULTS: Mean K10 scores differed, with decreasing levels, between inpatients and outpatient in MHS and the subjects with no psychiatric history. Factor analysis confirmed a unidimensional structure, and Cronbach's alpha and Omega showed excellent internal reliability. AUC for the K10 ROC curves showed excellent sensitivity (0.947 [0.900-0.995]), accurately differentiating mental health from non-mental health patients. CONCLUSION: The Danish K10 has the same strong internal reliability as the original English version, and scores differ between psychiatric patients in outpatient and emergency ward settings. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The Danish K10 translation is authorized and freely available for download at https://www.hcp.med.harvard.edu/ncs/k6_scales.php . The utility as an instrument for clinical screening in a mental healthcare setting is supported.
BACKGROUND: Psychological distress is a trans-diagnostic feature of mental suffering closely associated with mental disorders. Kessler's 10-item Psychological Distress Scale (K10), a scale with sound psychometric properties, is widely used in epidemiological studies. AIM: To translate and investigate whether K10 is a reliable and valid rating scale for the measurement of psychological distress in a Danish population. METHODS: The translation was carried out according to official WHO translation guidelines. A sample of 100 subjects was included, 54 patients from the regional Mental Health Service (MHS) and 46 subjects with no psychiatric history. All participants were assessed with a psychiatric diagnostic interview (MINI) and handed out K10. Concurrent validity was assessed by WHO Well-being Index (WHO-5). Correlation matrix analysis was conducted for the full sample and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for discriminating mental health service affiliation. RESULTS: Mean K10 scores differed, with decreasing levels, between inpatients and outpatient in MHS and the subjects with no psychiatric history. Factor analysis confirmed a unidimensional structure, and Cronbach's alpha and Omega showed excellent internal reliability. AUC for the K10 ROC curves showed excellent sensitivity (0.947 [0.900-0.995]), accurately differentiating mental health from non-mental health patients. CONCLUSION: The Danish K10 has the same strong internal reliability as the original English version, and scores differ between psychiatricpatients in outpatient and emergency ward settings. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The Danish K10 translation is authorized and freely available for download at https://www.hcp.med.harvard.edu/ncs/k6_scales.php . The utility as an instrument for clinical screening in a mental healthcare setting is supported.
Authors: Gomolemo Mahakwe; Ensa Johnson; Katarina Karlsson; Stefan Nilsson Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2021-02-16 Impact factor: 3.390