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Psychometric validation of the Arabic version of the GAD-7 among Lebanese adolescents

Myriam El Khoury-Malhame · Souheil R. Hallit · María‐José Sánchez‐Ruiz · Sleiman El Hajj · Rita Doumit

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Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development Psychometric Methodologies and Testing

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Anxiety is one of the major global mental health concerns, particularly amidst accumulating adversities. It is the leading cause of distress in adolescents worldwide and has a profound deleterious impact on their mental and physical health and wellbeing. This paper seeks to identify and validate the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the GAD-7 in Lebanon, aiming to improve the much-needed overall mental health screening in Middle Eastern countries. METHODS: This study includes a cross-sectional design including 638 adolescents in Lebanese public schools. Participants aged 15-18 years were assessed using GAD-7 (anxiety), PCL-5 (post-traumatic stress disorder), and PTGi (post-traumatic growth) in their Arabic versions at two-time points, spaced three months apart. RESULTS: Our analyses revealed that the 7 items of the GAD-7 converged into a single factor. Composite reliability of scores was adequate in the total sample (ω = .88/ α = .87). The convergent validity for this model was satisfactory. Results showed invariance across gender at the configural, metric, and scalar levels, with males showing a higher level of wellbeing compared to females. The pre-posttest assessment for the GAD-7 scale was conducted on 359 participants; the intraclass correlation coefficient was adequate 0.83 [95% CI.79;.86]. Our analyses also show that anxiety symptoms were significantly correlated with higher PTSD (r = 0.68; p < .001) and lower PTG (r = -.12; p = .004). CONCLUSION: The Arabic GAD-7 among Lebanese adolescents displayed highly satisfactory psychometric properties, underscoring its validity. This scale could be valuable for educators and clinicians as a screening tool to rapidly detect anxiety among this vulnerable age group as GAD-7 is easy-to-use, easy to understand, culturally sensitive for Arab population and age appropriate for 15-18-year-old students.

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