Are comparisons of mental disorders between Chinese and German students possible? An examination of measurement invariance for the PHQ-15, PHQ-9 and GAD-7

Table 5 Fit Indices from Comparative Factor Analysis (CFA) and Invariance Analyses between Groups for the GAD-7

	χ2 (df)	CFI	RMSEA [90% CI]	SRMR	ΔCFI	Δχ2 (df)
Single group CFA − original one-factor model
German Students	53.671 (14)	.967	.083 [.060, .106]	.035
Chinese Students	49.414 (14)	.977	.078 [.055, .102]	.028
Single group CFA (θ_{5, 6} free)
German Students	44.662 (13)	.974	.077 [.053, .102]	.031	.013	9.009, p > .001
Chinese Students	34.195 (13)	.986	.063 [.038, .089]	.023	.009	15.219
Multiple group CFA models (θ_{5, 6} free)
Configural invariance	87.866 (27)	.978	.074 [.057, .091]	.030
Metric invariance	127.041 (34)	.966	.081 [.066, .097]	.073	.012	39.175 (7)
λ₁ free	107.649 (33)	.973	.074 [.059, .090]	.048	.005	19.783 (6), p > .001
Scale invariance	185.052 (39)	.947	.095 [.082, .109]	.063	.026	77.403 (6)
τ₄ free	164.669 (38)	.954	.090 [.076, .104]	.058	.019	57.020 (5)
τ₄, τ₁ free	137.262 (37)	.963	.081 [.067, .096]	.052	.010	29.613 (4)
τ₄, τ_1, τ₂ free	120.930 (36)	.969	.075 [.061, .090]	.052	.004	13.281 (3), p > .001

Note. GAD-7 = Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item; Item 1 = ‘feeling nervous, anxious, or on edge’; item 2 = ‘not being able to stop or control worrying’; item 4 = ‘trouble relaxing.’ All χ2 tests and Δχ2 were significant, p < .001

ISSN: 1471-244X