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Validation of self-rated mental health
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by Farah N. Mawani and Heather Gilmour
Abstract
Keywords
Findings
Authors
What is already known on this subject?
What does this study add?
Abstract
Background
This article assesses the association between self-rated mental health and selected World Mental Health-Composite International Diagnostic Interview (WMH-CIDI)-measured disorders, self-reported diagnoses of mental disorders, and psychological distress in the Canadian population.
Data and methods
Data are from the 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey: Mental Health and Well-being. Weighted frequencies and cross-tabulations were used to estimate the prevalence of each mental morbidity measure and self-rated mental health by selected characteristics. Mean self-rated mental health scores were calculated for each mental morbidity measure. The association between self-rated mental health and each mental morbidity measure was analysed with logistic regression models.
Results
In 2002, an estimated 1.7 million Canadians aged 15 or older (7%) rated their mental health as fair or poor. Respondents classified with mental morbidity consistently reported lower mean self-rated mental health (SRMH) and had significantly higher odds of reporting fair/poor mental health than did those not classified with mental morbidity. Gradients in mean SRMH scores and odds of reporting fair/poor mental health by recency of WMH-CIDI-measured mental disorders were apparent. A sizeable percentage of respondents classified as having a mental morbidity did not perceive their mental health as fair/poor.
Interpretation
Although self-rated mental health is not a substitute for specific mental health measures it is potentially useful for monitoring general mental health.
Keywords
agoraphobia, bipolar disorder, depression, panic disorder, social phobia, perceived mental health, population health surveys
Findings
Studies of the extent to which the widely used measure, self-rated health, captures mental health suggest the need for a specifi c self-rated mental health (SRMH) measure. In fact, a number of surveys in Canada and worldwide have used such a measure: for example, the Ontario Health Survey: Mental Health Supplement; the Canadian Community Health Survey; and the World Mental Health Initiative Surveys in 28 countries.[Full text]
Authors
Farah N. Mawani (613-682-1862; fmawani@mentalhealthcommission.ca) is with the Mental Health Commission of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, K1Z 7K4. Heather Gilmour (613-951-2114; Heather.Gilmour@statcan.ca) is with the Health Analysis Division at Statistics Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0T6.
What is already known on this subject?
- Increasingly, population health surveys are using a single-item ordinal question on self-rated mental health, but little is known about its association with measures of mental morbidity.
- Research suggests that self-rated mental health is associated with other mental morbidity measures, including non-specific psychological distress, depressive symptoms, activity limitations and physical and emotional role functioning, but is not a replacement for them.
What does this study add?
- Associations between self-rated mental health and a comprehensive array of mental morbidity measures were strong and consistent, with gradients in mean self-rated mental health scores and odds of reporting fair/poor mental health by recency of WMH-CIDI-measured mental disorders.
- A sizeable percentage of respondents classified with mental morbidity did not perceive their mental health as fair/poor.
- Careful consideration should be given to the strengths and limitations of self-rated mental health in survey analysis.
