Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS-21): Construct Validity Problem in Hispanics

Area of Science:

• Psychometrics
• Clinical Psychology
• Cross-cultural Psychology

Background:

• The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS-21) is a widely used self-report measure.
• Assessing mental health in diverse populations requires culturally validated instruments.
• Previous validation studies of the DASS-21 may not generalize to Hispanic populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the construct validity of the DASS-21.
• To determine if the DASS-21 can differentiate between depression and anxiety symptoms.
• To assess the DASS-21's suitability for use with the Hispanic population in Puerto Rico.

Main Methods:

• An instrumental research design was employed.
• A sample of 1073 Hispanic individuals in Puerto Rico participated.
• Psychometric analyses focused on construct, convergent, and discriminant validity.

Main Results:

• The DASS-21 exhibited serious psychometric deficiencies.
• Convergent and discriminant validity were found to be problematic.
• The instrument's three-dimensional structure was not replicated in this population.

Conclusions:

• The DASS-21 demonstrates significant limitations in construct validity.
• The DASS-21 struggles to accurately identify and discriminate between depression and anxiety symptoms in this Hispanic sample.
• Further research is needed to develop or validate culturally appropriate measures for this population.