title: Development and community-based validation of eight item banks to assess mental health.
abstract: There is a need for precise but brief screening of mental health problems in a range of settings. The development of item banks to assess depression and anxiety has resulted in new adaptive and static screeners that accurately assess severity of symptoms. However, expansion to a wider array of mental health problems is required. The current study developed item banks for eight mental health problems: social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, drug use, psychosis and suicidality. The item banks were calibrated in a population-based Australian adult sample (N=3175) by administering large item pools (45-75 items) and excluding items on the basis of local dependence or measurement non-invariance. Item Response Theory parameters were estimated for each item bank using a two-parameter graded response model. Each bank consisted of 19-47 items, demonstrating excellent fit and precision across a range of -1 to 3 standard deviations from the mean. No previous study has developed such a broad range of mental health item banks. The calibrated item banks will form the basis of a new system of static and adaptive measures to screen for a broad array of mental health problems in the community.
authors: Centre for Mental Health Research, Research School of Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. Electronic address: philip.batterham@anu.edu.au.
authors: Philip J
authors: PJ
authors: Batterham
authors: NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors: Matthew
authors: M
authors: Sunderland
authors: Office of Medical Education, UNSW Australia, Sydney, Australia.
authors: Natacha
authors: N
authors: Carragher
authors: Centre for Mental Health Research, Research School of Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
authors: Alison L
authors: AL
authors: Calear
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000523:psychology; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D008603:Mental Health / Q000592:standards*; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D016584:Panic Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D011581:Psychological Tests / Q000592:standards*; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D063189:Symptom Assessment / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*
keywords: Adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder; Anxiety disorders; Assessment; Obsessive-compulsive disorder; Psychosis; Screening; Substance use; Suicidality