Abstract
After COVID-19 appeared in China in December 2019, the mental health of adolescents, as a vulnerable group in public health emergencies, was negatively affected by the epidemic and the unprecedented prevention and control measures. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Checklist (PCL) among Chinese adolescents. A total of 915 participants completed the PTSD. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) and multi-group CFAs were used to test the factor structure and psychometric properties of PTSD. The CFA results showed that five-factor PCL was the optimal fitting model with satisfactory reliability and validity; moreover, it was suggested that the properties of PCL were invariant across gender, PTSD and asymptomatic groups, early and late adolescents, as well as over time. In summary, PCL is applicable among Chinese adolescents and can be used for effective measurement of PTSD caused by epidemics and to conduct cross-group studies.
Highlights
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 and grew into a pandemic by March 2020 [1,2,3]
Research [4,5] and recent findings [6,7] suggested that infectious disease epidemics and pandemics may be traumatic experiences for some people that may lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) [3] and chronic psychological symptoms
Data indicated an increase in the prevalence of PTSD and traumatic symptoms in the general population since the COVID-19 epidemic began [9,10,11]
Summary
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 and grew into a pandemic by March 2020 [1,2,3]. 126,782 COVID-19 patients and 5697 deaths related in China. Research [4,5] and recent findings [6,7] suggested that infectious disease epidemics and pandemics may be traumatic experiences for some people that may lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) [3] and chronic psychological symptoms. Since the early days of the pandemic, public health experts have noted that the prevalence of PTSD is likely to increase in the general population [8]. Data indicated an increase in the prevalence of PTSD and traumatic symptoms in the general population since the COVID-19 epidemic began [9,10,11]. Adolescents were at a high risk of multiple mental health problems and experienced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) [14,15]
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