Towards a Multidimensional Understanding of Mental Health in Childhood and early Adolescence: A Dual-Factor Model and Its Associations with School-Related Well-Being

• In Event: Poster Session 9
  In Poster Session: Towards a Multidimensional Understanding of Mental Health in Childhood and early Adolescence: A Dual-Factor Model and Its Associations with School-Related Well-Being

Proposal

The conceptualization and measurement of subjective well-being (SWB) differs greatly (e.g. hedonic/eudaimonic/hybrid; unidimensional/multidimensional). Taking into account the fundamental dialectic, SWB can be understood not only as an expression of positive experiences, but also of the negative aspects of life (Ryff & Singer, 2003). As Delle Favre et al. (2011) suggest, it is not about a dichotomous polarization, but about the balance of two aspects in their entirety. Against this background, a dual-factor model of mental health (e.g. Suldo et al., 2016) appears to be a suitable approach for integrating both positive psychology and psychopathological constructs in one model. However, previous conceptualizations of dual-factor models have relied on unidimensional representations. Given that SWB and mental health are complex constructs with various sub-dimensions, such an approach presents certain limitations. For example, assuming that measurements are reflective may be problematic from a psychometric perspective (Marsh et al., 2020), and the lack of differentiation among dimensions is not ideal for exploring profiles of SWB. Compared to adults and adolescents, there is a particularly significant lack of evidence for this younger population.
This study presents initial arguments for the validity of an multidimensional instrument assessing a dual factor model mental health in children and early adolescents, grounded in the criteria for general mental disorders as outlined in the ICD-10 and DSM-5. Furthermore, it examines the associations with school-related well-being to analyze how school variables potentially transfer to a broader life-related context.
As part of a three-year longitudinal study started in February 2024, this contribution presents data from the first measurement point, involving a subsample of 906 students aged 10 to 14 years from the German-speaking part of Switzerland, who completed an online questionnaire. The measurement of the dual-factor model of mental health is based on a newly developed instrument inspired by the WB-Pro instrument by Marsh et al. (2020) and the German validation of the DASS21-Y (Szabo & Lovibond, 2022). School well-being was assessed using the three dimensions 'Positive Emotions at School,’ ‘Social Connectedness at School,’ and ‘Academic Self-Concept’ by Bürger et al. (2023). Data analysis was conducted using Mplus with MLR estimation and FIML for missing values.
First, the factorial structure of the different models was examined via ICM-CFA, ESEM, and B-ESEM, all of which showed good model fit (e.g., SWB-ICM-CFA: χ² = 1894.55; df = 1055; RMSEA = .03; CFI = .95; TLI = .94; SRMR = 0.04). The ESEM and B-ESEM indicated construct-relevant psychometric multidimensionality. Following the procedure of Smith et al. (2020), four profiles of mental health were distinguished: Complete mental health (high SWB, low DASS21; 61.7%), Vulnerable (low SWB, low DASS21; 12.5%), Symptomatic But Content (High SWB, high DASS21; 11,9%) and Troubled (low SWB, high DASS21; 13,9%). Using ANOVA, the differences in the dimensions of school-related well-being between the groups were found to be statistically significant (p < 0.001). The Eta values (e.g., η = 0.407 for positive Emotions in school) indicated a strong correlation between group membership and the dimensions of school-related well-being.

Authors

• Felix Kruse, St. Gallen University of Teacher Education

• Arvid Nagel, University of Teacher Education NMS Bern