Evaluating the psychometric properties of the mental health Continuum‐Short Form (MHC‐SF)

TLDR

Mental health is increasingly understood as encompassing positive feelings, functioning, and community life, not merely the absence of illness. The study examined the structure, reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity of the MHC‑SF, a new self‑report questionnaire for positive mental health assessment, and expected it to be reliable and valid with mental health and mental illness as related but distinct continua. The authors used data from the LISS panel of CentERdata, a representative longitudinal internet panel of 1,662 participants. The MHC‑SF demonstrated high internal and moderate test‑retest reliability, a three‑factor structure of emotional, psychological, and social well‑being, strong convergent validity with related aspects, discriminant validity separating mental health from mental illness, and confirmed that positive mental health is a distinct, reliably assessed indicator.

Abstract

There is a growing consensus that mental health is not merely the absence of mental illness, but it also includes the presence of positive feelings (emotional well-being) and positive functioning in individual life (psychological well-being) and community life (social well-being). We examined the structure, reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity of the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF), a new self-report questionnaire for positive mental health assessment. We expected that the MHC-SF is reliable and valid, and that mental health and mental illness are 2 related but distinct continua. This article draws on data of the LISS panel of CentERdata, a representative panel for Longitudinal Internet Studies for the Social Sciences (N = 1,662). Results revealed high internal and moderate test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) confirmed the 3-factor structure in emotional, psychological, and social well-being. These subscales correlated well with corresponding aspects of well-being and functioning, showing convergent validity. CFA supported the hypothesis of 2 separate yet related factors for mental health and mental illness, showing discriminant validity. Although related to mental illness, positive mental health is a distinct indicator of mental well-being that is reliably assessed with the MHC-SF.