Citation

Kagotho N, Patak-Pietrafesa M, Ssewamala FM, Kirkbride G. J. Adolesc. Health 2018; 62(Suppl 1): S21-S28.

Affiliation

International Center for Child Health and Development, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.11.002

PMID

29273114

Abstract

PURPOSE: The Child Depression Inventory (CDI) is a commonly used measure of depression among youth and has been used in studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa demonstrating positive effects of financial asset-building interventions on physical and mental health outcomes. However, before we can be certain that asset building does indeed improve mental health functioning, we must first be sure that the instruments used to measure mental health in this population are valid and culturally appropriate.

METHODS: This two-part study used baseline data from a sample of youth (N = 1,348, 13-18 years) participating in the YouthSave-Impact Study Kenya to clarify the psychometric properties of the 10-item CDI (study A), and then used the 10-item CDI to assess the relationship between financial assets and mental health functioning among this sample of adolescents (study B).

RESULTS: Factor analysis on the 10-item CDI indicated a one-factor eight-item measure with excellent model fit. Invariance testing indicated that the measure performed differently for male and female respondents. Finally, using the latent structure as the dependent variable, the second part of the analysis established that cash savings were associated with depression. Female and male adolescents with savings reported lower depression (female β = -.17, p ≤.003; male β = -.12, p ≤.020) than other youth.

CONCLUSION: This study identified a reasonable one-factor eight-item depression measure that was noninvariant across gender. This validated measure was used to confirm the association between financial assets and mental health outcomes, hence, supporting the hypothesis that financial assets are associated with mental health outcomes.

Copyright © 2017 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Asset building; Child Depression Inventory; Factor analysis; Financial assets; Measurement; Sub-Saharan Africa