University Student Depression Inventory: Measurement model and psychometric properties

Figures & data

Table 1. Parameter estimates and goodness‐of‐fit indexes for CFA of the USDI

Items	P.E1	Z	P.E2
Lethargy
1. I am more tired than I used to be	0.81	0.96	0.68
4. I do not have the energy to study …	0.77	0.50	0.67
9. My energy is low	0.91	1.66	0.77
13. I find it hard to concentrate	0.89	0.98	0.77
16. I don't feel rested even after sleeping	0.85	2.21*	0.73
18. Challenges I encounter in my studies …	0.76	1.76	0.68
21. My mood affects my ability to carry …	0.49	−0.37	0.42
24. Daily tasks take me longer than they …	0.73	1.47	0.67
28. My study is disrupted by distracting …	0.87	0.36	0.69
Cognitive/Emotion
2. I wonder whether life is worth living	0.77	3.41**	0.64
5. I feel worthless	0.91	3.80**	0.73
7. I have thought about killing myself	0.66	6.58**	0.59
10. No one cares about me	0.79	2.91**	0.67
11. I feel emotionally empty	0.86	1.82	0.73
14. I feel sad	0.87	0.67	0.79
15. I worry I will not amount to anything	0.72	1.68	0.62
17. The activities I used to enjoy no …	0.72	1.08	0.66
19. I feel like I cannot control my …	0.62	2.44	0.59
20. I spend more time alone than I used to	0.87	0.84	0.69
22. I feel disappointed in myself	0.95	1.51	0.81
25. I feel withdrawn when I'm around …	0.78	2.97**	0.69
26. I do not cope well	0.71	1.68	0.71
29. I think most people are better than me	0.57	1.56	0.50
Academic Motivation
3. I do not have any desire to go to lectures	0.73	0.85	0.51
6. I don't attend lectures as much as I …	0.89	1.32	0.64
8. I don't feel motivated to study	0.91	1.93	0.73
12. Going to university is pointless	0.92	4.06**	0.66
23. I have trouble starting assignments	0.93	0.69	0.76
27. I do not find study as interesting as …	0.97	2.98*	0.74
30. I have trouble completing study tasks	0.87	1.24	0.77
Model	NNFI	RMSEA	CFI	S‐B χ^2	Δ S‐B χ^2
M1 = one‐factor model	0.90	0.12 (0.115–0.124)	0.90	2486.90	1221.65^1***
M2 = three‐factor orthogonal model	0.96	0.077 (0.072–0.082)	0.96	1265.25	229.35^1***
M3a = three‐factor oblique model	0.97	0.066 (0.061–0.071)	0.97	1035.90	282.32***
M3b = three‐factor oblique model and correlated errors	0.97	0.051 (0.046–0.057)	0.97	753.58	29.07***
M4 = three‐factor oblique model, correlated errors and second order total score	0.98	0.049 (0.044–0.055)	0.98	724.51

Notes. CFA = confirmatory factor analysis; P.E₁ = parameter estimation for three‐factor oblique model; P.E₂ = parameter estimation for three‐factor oblique model, correlated errors, and second order total score; Z = Z score for tests of univariate normality; *p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001.

Table 2. Spearman correlations of USDI and subscale scores with BDI, SIS, and SSI based on normative sample

Measures	SIS	BDI	SSI
Lethargy	0.66**	0.72**	0.63**
Cognitive/Emotion	0.66**	0.79**	0.68**
Academic Motivation	0.47**	0.62**	0.51**
USDI	0.65**	0.75**	0.69**

Notes. **P < .01 (two‐tailed), SIS = suicide ideation scale, BDI = Beck's Depression Inventory, SSI = Student‐life Stress Inventory, and USDI = the University Student Depression Inventory.

Table 3. Means, standard deviations, internal consistency coefficients, and mean inter‐item correlations of USDI

	Lethargy		Cognitive/Emotion		Academic motivation		USDI
Normative samples (n = 359)
Sample	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
M	24.39	21.84	33.13	29.80	17.82	15.72	75.34	67.37
SD	7.63	6.85	10.63	11.74	6.80	6.25	21.26	20.94
α	0.88	0.87	0.90	0.94	0.85	0.89	0.94	0.95
Mr.	0.44	0.42	0.38	0.53	0.46	0.53	0.33	0.37
Clinical samples (n = 150)
M	26.73	27.08	40.43	38.90	20.69	19.56	88.49	86.35
SD	7.83	8.16	12.01	15.16	8.91	8.58	20.94	26.10
α	0.92	0.91	0.94	0.96	0.94	0.95	0.93	0.96
Mr.	0.55	0.53	0.53	0.67	0.71	0.73	0.31	0.44

Notes. α = Cronbach's alpha; M = mean; Mr. = mean inter‐item correlation.