Validation of the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) in Rwanda
Author Information
Author(s): Willem F Scholte, Femke Verduin, Anouk van Lammeren, Theoneste Rutayisire, Astrid M Kamperman
Primary Institution: Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam
Hypothesis
Can the SRQ-20 effectively screen for mental disorders in a Rwandan community setting?
Conclusion
The SRQ-20 can be used to detect mental disorders in Rwanda, but cut-off scores need to be adjusted for gender.
Supporting Evidence
- The SRQ-20 showed good reliability with Cronbach's alpha values of 0.85 for women and 0.81 for men.
- The optimal cut-off score for men was found to be 8, while for women it was 10.
- The area under the curve (AUC) for the SRQ-20 was 0.76, indicating moderate performance in detecting mental disorders.
- Factor analysis revealed five factors explaining 38% of the total variance.
Takeaway
The SRQ-20 is a tool that helps find out if people in Rwanda might have mental health issues, but it needs to be tweaked for men and women.
Methodology
The SRQ-20 was translated into Kinyarwanda, and data were collected from 418 respondents, with a subsample of 230 reassessed after three months.
Potential Biases
Potential bias due to cultural sensitivity and the background of the assessors.
Limitations
The actual prevalence of psychopathology in the Rwandan community is unknown, which may bias sensitivity and specificity estimates.
Participant Demographics
Participants included adults aged 16 and up, with a male-female ratio of around 2:3.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.001
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Want to read the original?
Access the complete publication on the publisher's website