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Factorial Validity of the Twi Version of the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form and Prevalence of Mental Health in a Rural Ghanaian Sample

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Embracing Well-Being in Diverse African Contexts: Research Perspectives

Part of the book series: Cross-Cultural Advancements in Positive Psychology ((CAPP,volume 16))

Abstract

Positive mental health, and the validity of its assessment instruments, are largely unexplored in the Ghanaian context. This study examined the factor structure of the Twi version of the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form and explored the prevalence of positive mental health in a sample of rural Ghanaian adults (N = 444). A bifactor exploratory structural equation modelling (ESEM) model fit the data better than competing models (confirmatory factor analysis [CFA], bifactor CFA, and ESEM models). We found a high omega reliability coefficient for the general positive mental health factor (ω = .97) and marginal reliability scores for the emotional (ω = .51) and social well-being (ω = .57) subscales, but a low reliability score for the psychological well-being subscale (ω = .41). Findings support the existence of a general mental health factor, and confirm the underlying three-dimensional structure of mental health, but suggest that caution should be applied when interpreting subscale scores, especially for the psychological well-being subscale. Based on Keyes’s criteria for the categorical diagnosis of the presence of positive mental health, 25.5% of the sample were flourishing, with 74.5% functioning at suboptimal levels (31.1% languishing, 41.4% with moderate mental health) and may benefit from contextually relevant positive psychological interventions, which may also buffer against psychopathology.

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Acknowledgements

The authors remain thankful to all participants, chiefs and elders of the communities, and research assistants involved in this study. The authors also thank Amanda Cromhout for her assistance with analysing the data. The first author is thankful to the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (South Africa) for the award of the African Pathways NIHSS-CODESRIA Doctoral Scholarship towards his doctoral studies at the North-West University (NWU). The scholarship source did not have any influence on the design of the study, data collection, and analysis or writing of the manuscript. The first author is also grateful to the NWU for the receipt of Doctoral and International Students’ bursaries during the period of his studentship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa

    Richard Appiah, Marié P. Wissing, Angelina Wilson Fadiji & Lusilda Schutte

  2. College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana

    Richard Appiah

  3. Department of Educational Psychology, Faculty of Education, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa

    Angelina Wilson Fadiji

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  1. Richard Appiah
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  2. Marié P. Wissing
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  3. Angelina Wilson Fadiji
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  4. Lusilda Schutte
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Correspondence to Richard Appiah .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa

    Lusilda Schutte

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa

    Tharina Guse

  3. Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa

    Marié P. Wissing

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Appiah, R., Wissing, M.P., Wilson Fadiji, A., Schutte, L. (2022). Factorial Validity of the Twi Version of the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form and Prevalence of Mental Health in a Rural Ghanaian Sample. In: Schutte, L., Guse, T., Wissing, M.P. (eds) Embracing Well-Being in Diverse African Contexts: Research Perspectives. Cross-Cultural Advancements in Positive Psychology, vol 16. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-85924-4_4

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