Cultural-based biases of the GAD-7.
The GAD-7 is a popular measure of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) symptoms that has been used across many cultural groups. Existing evidence demonstrates that the prevalence of GAD varies across self-identified ethnic/cultural groups, a phenomenon that some researchers attribute to cross-cultural measurement error rather than to actual differences in rates of GAD. Nonetheless, the effect of culture on factor structure and response patterns to the GAD-7 have not been examined and could result over- or under-estimated GAD-7 scores across different cultural groups. The current investigation assessed the factor structure of the GAD-7 in White/Caucasian, Hispanic, and Black/African American undergraduates and tested for cultural-based biases. A modified one-factor model exhibited good fit across subsamples. Results revealed that Black/African American participants with high GAD symptoms scored lower on the GAD-7 than other participants with similar GAD symptoms. Results highlight the need for culturally sensitive GAD screening tools.
Department of Psychology, University of Regina, Canada.
Holly A
HA
Parkerson
Department of Psychology, University of Regina, Canada.
Michel A
MA
Thibodeau
Department of Psychology, University of Houston, United States.
Charles P
CP
Brandt
Department of Psychology, University of Houston, United States.
Michael J
MJ
Zvolensky
Department of Psychology, University of Regina, Canada. Electronic address: gordon.asmundson@uregina.ca.
Gordon J G
GJ
Asmundson
D001741:Black or African American / Q000208:ethnology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D055815:Young Adult
Confirmatory factor analysis; Culture; Differential item functioning; Ethnicity; GAD-7; Generalized anxiety disorder