Table 1.
Convergent and Divergent validity measures and hypotheses tested in the study
| Measures | Description | Hypothesis / validity criteriaa |
|---|---|---|
| Positive Mental Health (PMH) instrument | This 47-item multi-dimensional scale measures positive mental health, where scores range from 1 to 6, with higher scores indicating higher positive mental wellbeing. The response scale represents 1- ‘Not at all like me’ to 6- ‘Exactly like me’ | SWEMWBS will have moderate to high positive correlation with PMH total score. |
| Global assessment of functioning (GAF) | The Global Assessment of Functioning scale is a scoring system for the severity of illness in psychiatry which assesses overall functioning, taking into account impairments in psychological, social and occupational/school functioning. The scale ranges from 0 (inadequate information) to 100 (superior functioning). | SWEMWBS will have moderate positive correlation with GAF score. |
| Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) | This 5-item scale measures global cognitive judgments of satisfaction with one’s life, using a 7-point scale from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. Scores are summed and higher scores indicate higher satisfaction. | SWEMWBS will have mild to moderate positive correlation with SWLS. |
| Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) -8 | This is a self-administered depression scale that adopts a 4-point scale, where 0 = not at all and 3 = nearly everyday and respondents indicate how often they have been bothered by each of the items, in the past 2 weeks. Total scores range from 0 to 27, where scores of 20 and above indicate severe major depressive disorder. | The SWEMWBS will have mild to moderate negative correlation with PHQ-8. |
| General Anxiety Disorder (GAD) -7 scale | In this 7-item anxiety measure respondents are asked in the past 2 weeks how often they have been bothered by the following problems and use a 4-point scale from 0 being ‘not at all sure’ to 3 representing ‘nearly every day’. Scores are summed and higher scores indicate greater anxiety. | The SWEMWBS will have mild to moderate negative correlation with GAD-7. |
aStrength of correlations: mild: r = 0.2–0.4; moderate: r = 0.5–0.7; high: r = 0.8–1.0