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A Culturally Relevant Conceptualization of Depression: an Empirical Examination of the Factorial Structure of the Vietnamese Depression Scale

School of Social Work, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, tamdinh{at}usc.edu

Ann Marie Yamada

School of Social Work, University of Southern California

Barbara W.K. Yee

University of Hawaii at Manoa, CTAHR, Honolulu, HI

Background: Despite the high risk of depression among Vietnamese refugees, there has been insufficient attention to the psychometric properties of the most utilized scale, the Vietnamese Depression Scale (VDS: Kinzie etal., 1982).

Aim: The primary aim of the study is to empirically derive the factorial structure of the VDS to support its use as a culturally responsive depression screening tool in community samples of Vietnamese adults.

Method: The factorial structure, reliability, and associations of the VDS factors with recognized socio-demographic correlates were examined using data collected from interviews with a non-probability community sample of 180 Vietnamese refugee adults in the Houston area.

Results: The empirically derived factorial structure of the VDS approximated the theorized conceptualization of depression introduced by the scale’s originators. Three factors (depressed affect, somatic symptoms, and cultural-specific symptoms) accounted for 65% of the variance. As hypothesized, the VDS factors correlated with age and acculturation variables.

Conclusion: Overall results suggest that the conceptualization of depression among this sample of Vietnamese refugees has both universal and culturally specific features. Implications for providing culturally responsive mental health services are offered.

Key Words: factor analysis • major depression screening tool • psychometrics • refugees

This version was published on November 1, 2009

International Journal of Social Psychiatry, Vol. 55, No. 6, 496-505 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/0020764008091675


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