Validation of the WHO-5 Well-Being Scale among Adolescents in Ghana: Evidence-Based Assessment of the Internal and External Structure of the Measure

Frank Quansah; John Elvis Hagan Jr; Francis Ankomah; Edmond Kwesi Agormedah; Regina Mawusi Nugba; Medina Srem-Sai; Thomas Schack

doi:10.3390/children9070991

Validation of the WHO-5 Well-Being Scale among Adolescents in Ghana: Evidence-Based Assessment of the Internal and External Structure of the Measure

Children (Basel). 2022 Jul 1;9(7):991. doi: 10.3390/children9070991.

Authors

Frank Quansah¹, John Elvis Hagan Jr^{2

3}, Francis Ankomah^{4

5}, Edmond Kwesi Agormedah⁶, Regina Mawusi Nugba⁴, Medina Srem-Sai⁷, Thomas Schack³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Educational Foundations, University of Education, Winneba P.O. Box 25, Ghana.
² Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast 03321, Ghana.
³ Neurocognition and Action-Biomechanics-Research Group, Faculty of Psychology and Sports Science, Bielefeld University, Postfach 10 01 31, 33501 Bielefeld, Germany.
⁴ Department of Education and Psychology, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast 03321, Ghana.
⁵ Department of Education, SDA College of Education, Asokore-Koforidua P.O. Box AS 18, Ghana.
⁶ Department of Business & Social Sciences Education, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast 03321, Ghana.
⁷ Department of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Sports, University of Education, Winneba P.O. Box 25, Ghana.

Abstract

The WHO-5 well-being measure happens to be one of the most renowned measures of subjective well-being across the globe. Although the instrument has been calibrated in different countries, its psychometric properties and applicability in Africa, especially in Ghana, are not known. In this study, the WHO-5 well-being scale was validated among adolescents in Ghana by assessing the validity evidence of the measure based on the internal and external structure. In particular, the study examined the (1) dimensionality of the WHO-5 well-being scale, (2) quality of the items (including the scale functioning) for the measure, and (3) criterion validity of the well-being measure. Using a survey approach, 997 adolescents were recruited in secondary schools across the northern belt of Ghana. The study found a one-factor structure of the scale, which supports the factor solution of the original measure. The items were found to be of high quality, except for one item. The WHO-5 well-being measure was found to have sufficient evidence regarding convergent and divergent validity. The outcome of this validation study provides support for the validity and reliability of the WHO-5 well-being scale's utility and use among adolescents in Ghana. The study encourages further validation studies to be conducted in Ghana to widen the reproducibility of the WHO-5 well-being measure.

Keywords: Ghana; adolescents; depression; distress; health; secondary school; well-being.

Grants and funding

The authors sincerely thank Bielefeld University, Germany for providing financial support through the Open Access Publication Fund for the article processing charge.