Abstract
The lifetime prevalence of emotional disorders in Spain is 4.1% for anxiety and 5.2% for depression, increasing among university students. Considering the scarcity of screenings with adequate psychometric properties, this study aims to explore the validity evidence of the Overall Anxiety/Depression Severity and Impairment Scales (OASIS and ODSIS). A total of 382 university students from the general population were assessed on anxiety and depressive symptoms, as well as quality of life. The one-dimensional structure of both the OASIS and ODSIS explained 87.53% and 90.60% of variance, with excellent internal consistency (α = 0.94 and 0.95, respectively) and optimal cut-offs of 4 and 5, respectively. Both scales show a significant moderate association with other measures of anxiety, depression and quality of life. The OASIS and ODSIS have shown good reliability and sound validity evidence that recommend their use for the assessment and early detection of anxiety and depressive symptoms, and associated quality of life impairment in Spanish youth.
Highlights
As anxiety, depressive and related disorders entail frequent and intense negative emotions, aversive reactions to the emotional experience and a tendency to dampen, or escape from /avoid it [1], they are referred to as emotional disorders (EDs)
The present study investigates the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Overall Anxiety Severity and Impairment Scale (OASIS) and Overall Depression Severity and Impairment Scale (ODSIS) in a sample of nonclinical university students
Validity Evidence Based on OASIS Internal Structure
Summary
Depressive and related disorders entail frequent and intense negative emotions, aversive reactions to the emotional experience and a tendency to dampen, or escape from /avoid it [1], they are referred to as emotional disorders (EDs). The university period is considered highly stressful because students have to adjust themselves to a different environment and to cope with various stressors such as lifestyle changes [7] that can affect social relationships, academic and work performance [8,9], and quality of life [10]. All these factors may increase the risk for psychological distress [11,12] and mental disorders [7]. Evidence suggests that university students present higher rates of EDs in comparison with non-students in the same age range [15] and adult population [16,17]
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