Mónica Cassaretto Bardales, Andrea Burneo
La Escala Reducida de Depresión, Ansiedad y Estrés (DASS-21) es un instrumento ampliamente utilizado para evaluar la salud mental mediante la medición de sintomatología emocional negativa. Si bien su uso es generalizado, aún continua en debate su dimensionalidad y relaciones con variables positivas de la salud mental. Este estudio analiza sus propiedades psicométricas en 3147 estudiantes universitarios peruanos durante la pandemia de COVID-19. Los análisis confirmatorios sugieren que un modelo bifactor con un factor general de Malestar General y tres factores específicos de Depresión, Ansiedad y Estrés presenta los mejores índices de ajuste (CFI=.97, TLI=.97, RMSEA=.07, SRMR=.04). Se reporta evidencia de validez convergente y discriminante con medidas de bienestar subjetivo y confiabilidad mediante el coeficiente omega jerárquico.
Sin embargo, no se evidencia invarianza factorial por sexo. En conclusión, existe apoyo a la propuesta bifactor de la prueba en estudiantes universitarios peruanos.
The Reduced Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) is a widely used instrument to assess mental health by measuring negative emotional symptomatology. Although its use is widespread, its dimensionality and relationships with positive mental health variables are still under debate. This study analyzes its psychometric properties in 3147 Peruvian university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Confirmatory factor analyses reveal that a bifactor model, with a general factor called General Distress and three specific factors of Depression, Anxiety and Stress, is the one that presents the best fit indices (CFI=.97, TLI=.97, RMSEA=.07, SRMR=.04). Evidence of convergent and discriminant validity with measures of subjective well-being is presented. In addition, reliability indicators are provided through the hierarchical omega coefficient. Finally, there is no evidence to support the factorial invariance of the test. In conclusion, there is support for the bifactor test proposal in Peruvian university students.