Reliability and validity of K10 and K6 in screening depressive symptoms in Hong Kong adolescents

Siu Mui CHAN, Thomas Chak Tong FUNG

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93 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The current study examined the reliability and validity of Kessler 10 (K10) and Kessler 6 (K6) in screening adolescents at risk of suffering from depression. In total, 2325 Hong Kong secondary school students aged between 12 and 19 years completed a questionnaire consisting of Chinese-language versions of K10 (which includes K6) and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). Confirmatory factor analyses results supported that both K10 and K6 were unidimensional and had high internal consistency when used with Hong Kong adolescents. When BDI II was used as the gold standard, the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) supported that both K10 and K6 have good validity, using optimal cutoffs of 27 for K10 and 17 for K6. The results in this Hong Kong sample suggest that both K10 and K6 are reliable and valid tools to screen for adolescents’ depressive mood in epidemiological survey research. Copyright © 2014 Routledge.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)75-85
JournalVulnerable Children and Youth Studies: An International Interdisciplinary Journal for Research, Policy and Care
Volume9
Issue number1
Early online dateNov 2013
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2014

Citation

Chan, S. M., & Fung, T. C. T. (2014). Reliability and validity of K10 and K6 in screening depressive symptoms in Hong Kong adolescents. Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies: An International Interdisciplinary Journal for Research, Policy and Care, 9(1), 75-85.

Keywords

  • K6
  • K10
  • Kessler scale
  • Hong Kong adolescent
  • Depression
  • Epidemiological study

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