title: Psychometric Properties of the DASS-21 Among Latina/o College Students by the US-Mexico Border.
abstract: Anxious-depression symptomatology is frequently encountered among Latina/o individuals. There is a dearth of studies that examine this mixed class of anxiety and depression symptomatology, especially among Latina/o college students by the US-Mexico border. A total of 505 participants from rural institutions of higher education completed the DASS21. Psychometric properties were measured by means of confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to determine gender differences in depression, anxiety and stress. Among women, 18 % reported at least moderate levels of depressive symptoms, 33.1 % reported at least moderate levels of anxiety symptoms, and 16.4 % reported at least moderate levels of stress. In men, 15.9 % reported at least moderate levels of depressive symptoms, 34.1 % reported at least moderate levels of anxiety symptoms, and 12.9 % reported at least moderate levels of stress. The EFA supported a one dimension factor (anxious/stress-depression) among this sample of Latina/o college students (Bartlett's test = 4960.9; df = 210; p ≤ 0.01; Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin = 0.95). The MANOVA found no significant gender differences in depression, anxiety symptomatology and stress [Wilks'Λ = 0.99; F = (3, 500) = 2.41; p = 0.07]. The DASS-21 showed a one dimensional construct of anxious/stress-depression symptomatology in a Latina/o rural undergraduate sample, raising awareness to the need to screen and monitor this constellation of symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Psychiatry, Family Medicine and Public Health, University of California, San Diego, 2417 Marshall Ave. Ste 4, Imperial, San Diego, CA, 92251, USA. acamacho@ucsd.edu.|Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, Imperial Valley, San Diego, CA, USA. acamacho@ucsd.edu.
authors.forename: Álvaro
authors.initials: Á
authors.lastname: Camacho
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, Imperial Valley, San Diego, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Cordero
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, Imperial Valley, San Diego, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Tara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Perkins
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000208:ethnology*; D003863:Depression / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017058:Mexican Americans / Q000523:psychology; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors; D013334:Students; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Anxious-depression; DASS-21; Latino/a college student; Screening