Revalidation of Adjustment Disorder-New Module-4 screening of adjustment disorder in a non-clinical sample: Psychometric reevaluation and correlates with other ICD-11 mental disorders.
Osnat LavendaMichal Mahat-ShamirLouisa LorenzYaira Hamama-RazLee Greenblatt-KimronShani Pitcho-PrelorentzosLia RingEti Bar-ShuaMenachem Ben-EzraPublished in: PsyCh journal (2019)
In line with the new conceptualization of adjustment disorder (AjD) in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), a new 20-item self-report questionnaire was developed and validated - the Adjustment Disorder-New Module (ADNM). However, such a long research tool has the potential to become problematic for use in epidemiological and clinical settings. Therefore, an ultra-brief measure for AjD (ADNM-4) was established and validated in a recent study conducted with a representative national sample. The aim of the present study was to revalidate the ultra-brief ADNM-4 Scale, as well as to reestablish cutoff scores for clinical use. An online survey was conducted with a convenience sample of 484 Israelis aged 18-65 years, who were recruited via social media. Participants filled out self-report questionnaires dealing with diagnostic criteria of stress-related disorders, that is, AjD (the original and ultra-brief modules), prolonged grief disorder, depression, anxiety, and hypochondriasis. Construct, discriminant, and convergent validity were assessed via confirmatory factor analysis and correlation coefficients, while cutoff scores were established through receiver-operating characteristic analysis. The findings confirmed the ultra-brief module's validity. The high fit indices indicated construct validity, and the correlations with the various stress-related disorders indicated good convergent and discriminant validity. Cutoff scores resembled earlier cutoff scores calculated with a representative national sample, indicating a consistent and accurate diagnostic ability. These findings provide additional evidence for the psychometric characteristics of the ADNM-4, which seems to be a suitable brief screening tool for assessing AjD symptoms according to the ICD-11 definition. Therefore, the ADNM-4 is recommended in cases where prompt screening is required, as well as for research purposes.