Validation of the Malay version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) among Malaysian undergraduates

Yee Kee Tan; Ching Sin Siau; Norhayati Ibrahim; Kairi Kõlves; Jie Zhang; Caryn Mei Hsien Chan; Meng Chuan Ho; Chun Hong Gan; Noh Amit; Nurul Syasya Mohd Ridzwan Goh; Lai Fong Chan

doi:10.1016/j.ajp.2024.104134

Validation of the Malay version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) among Malaysian undergraduates

Asian J Psychiatr. 2024 Sep:99:104134. doi: 10.1016/j.ajp.2024.104134. Epub 2024 Jul 4.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: p116885@siswa.ukm.edu.my.
² Centre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: chingsin.siau@ukm.edu.my.
³ Centre for Healthy Aging and Wellness (H-Care), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Institute of Islam Hadhari, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia. Electronic address: yatieibra@ukm.edu.my.
⁴ Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention, World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Suicide Prevention, School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Mt. Gravatt, Queensland, Australia. Electronic address: k.kolves@griffith.edu.au.
⁵ School of Public Health, Shandong University, Jinan, China; Department of Sociology, State University of New York, Buffalo State, Buffalo, NY, USA. Electronic address: zhangj@buffalostate.edu.
⁶ Centre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: caryn@ukm.edu.my.
⁷ Centre for Pre-U Studies, UCSI University (Springhill Campus), Port Dickson, Malaysia. Electronic address: homc@ucsiuniversity.edu.my.
⁸ Centre for Rehabilitation and Special Needs Studies (iCaRehab), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: ganchunhong@ukm.edu.my.
⁹ Centre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: nohamit@ukm.edu.my.
¹⁰ Health Psychology Clinic, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: syasyagoh@ukm.edu.my.
¹¹ Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, National University of Malaysia (UKM), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address: laifchan@ppukm.ukm.edu.my.

PMID: 39018701
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajp.2024.104134

Abstract

The study's objective is to validate the Malay version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) among Malaysian undergraduates. A cross-sectional survey was distributed at three universities in Malaysia (N = 500; mean age = 21.66 ± 1.57). The internal consistency of the Malay PHQ-4 was acceptable (α = .78, 95 % CI [.74, .81]), while the test-retest reliability was good (ICC = .77, 95 % CI [.34, .91], p < .001). The one-factor structure showed the best fit in confirmatory factor analysis and was similar across sexes. The Malay PHQ-4 has acceptable psychometric properties and can be used for pre-clinical screening purposes among Malaysian undergraduate students.

Keywords: Anxiety; Depression; Malaysia; Measurement invariance; PHQ-4; Psychometrics.

Publication types

Validation Study

MeSH terms

Adult
Cross-Sectional Studies
Depression / diagnosis
Female
Humans
Malaysia
Male
Patient Health Questionnaire / standards
Psychometrics* / instrumentation
Psychometrics* / standards
Reproducibility of Results
Students* / psychology
Students* / statistics & numerical data
Universities
Young Adult