ARCH Lab Graduate Students Megan Dol and Erica McDonald recently published a paper with Dr. Ferro titled “Psychometric properties of the CESD, STAI-T, and PSS among parents of children with mental illness”. The study looked at commonly used scales to assess psychological distress in adults to find out if the measures are still valid when used in parents with children with mental illness.

Specifically, we examined the psychometric properties of the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CESD), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-T), and Parental Stress Scale (PSS) in parents whose children have mental illness. The data came from 99 parents of children with mental illness who were currently receiving inpatient or outpatient mental health services.

Through our analysis we found that the CESD, STAI-T, and PSS are valid and reliable scales in parents of children with mental illness. Providing evidence for the use of these measures will be useful in treatment in the context of family centred care for children with mental illness.