Contribution to the validation of the SCL-90-R in French-speaking women.

This study is a contribution to the French validation of the Derogatis (1977) Symptom Check-List SCL-90-R. Norms reflecting the mental health status of a representative sample of French-speaking women from Montreal, Canada, are provided. Results indicated that the women in our sample generally obtained higher raw scores than those reported by Derogatis for the nonpatient group for the nine symptom scales and the three global scores. The reliability of the French version yielded a satisfactory Cronbach alpha of .91. High and significant positive correlations were found on the test-retest as well as on the Spearman-Brown split-half test. Validity was assessed using the principal component analysis on six factors accounting for 88% of the variance. The correlations between the symptom scales ranged from .32 to .74, indicating the relative independence of the dimensions of the French version of the SCL-90-R. The usefulness of the method will be enhanced by further cross-validation and concurrent validity studies including patient populations.