Abstract
BackgroundThis study describes the psychometric testing of the Mental Health Continuum (MHC) model the Canadian Department of National Defense developed initially, among undergraduates of three Canadian universities. The MHC is a tool that consists of 6 items to guide students the way to attend to, or monitor, signs and behavior indicators of their mental health status and suggest appropriate actions to improve their mental health.MethodsOnline survey data were collected from 4206 undergraduate students in three universities in two Canadian provinces during the spring of 2015 and winter of 2016. Participants completed an online survey questionnaire that consisted of the MHC questionnaire, the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10), and demographic information, including age, gender, and year of study.ResultsFactor analysis using the principal components method followed by a two-step internal replication analysis showed that the MHC tool was two-dimensional and that all six domains assessed were crucial. The construct (convergent) validity of the MHC tool was tested against the K-10, and the correlation analysis results were strong overall, as well as within subgroups defined by gender, year of study, and university.ConclusionsThe MHC is a useful tool that helps college students reflect on and enhance their mental health.
Highlights
IntroductionMental health issues are a growing public health concern in Canada [1,2,3]
This study describes the psychometric testing of the Mental Health Continuum (MHC) model the Canadian Department of National Defense developed initially, among undergraduates of three Canadian universities
A growing body of international research has demonstrated the positive effects of mental health promotion, prevention, and early intervention on ameliorating mental health
Summary
Mental health issues are a growing public health concern in Canada [1,2,3]. It has been estimated that nearly 355,000 working Canadians would not be unable to work in any given week as a result of mental illnesses or mental and behavioral disorders [4]. A growing body of international research has demonstrated the positive effects of mental health promotion, prevention, and early intervention on ameliorating mental health (2020) 8:76 problems and increasing the return on investments [10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18]. Friedli and Parsonage [12] found that, in the United Kingdom, early intervention prevented children from developing conduct disorders that resulted in lifetime savings of £230,000 per child. The authors highlighted the importance of improving early detection in clinical settings, schools, and the community
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