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How to Measure the Mental Health of Teachers? Psychometric Properties of the GHQ-12 in a Large Sample of German Teachers

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  • Sarah Susanne Lütke Lanfer

    (Department for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center–University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79104 Freiburg, Germany)

  • Ruth Pfeifer

    (Department for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center–University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79104 Freiburg, Germany)

  • Claas Lahmann

    (Department for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center–University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79104 Freiburg, Germany)

  • Alexander Wünsch

    (Department for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center–University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79104 Freiburg, Germany
    Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3010 Bern, Switzerland)

Abstract

To improve the health status of teachers, there is a need for good and reliable instruments to continuously assess their mental health. The current study proposed the GHQ-12 questionnaire as an appropriate instrument for measuring the mental health of teachers. The GHQ-12 is a well-established screening instrument that has mostly been applied in non-teaching samples. In the current study, the psychometric properties of the questionnaire were analyzed using a large sample of German teachers ( N = 3996). The data was collected yearly over an extended period of time (2012–2020). Results showed good to very good reliability, as well as high correspondence to burnout and life satisfaction scales. Principal axis factor analysis supported a two-factor structure: Factor 1 represents “depression/stress” and Factor 2 represents “loss of confidence”. However, the mental health of the investigated teachers was worse than that of a representative sample in Germany. Consequently, this study highlighted the fact that the teaching profession is vulnerable to mental strain and underlined the importance of promoting prevention programs that could help to sustain and foster the mental health of teachers. In this context, the GHQ-12 could be proposed as a good and economic tool to assess and analyze mental health in German teachers. The presented norm could help practitioners and teachers to compare individual scores within a larger peer group.

Suggested Citation

  • Sarah Susanne Lütke Lanfer & Ruth Pfeifer & Claas Lahmann & Alexander Wünsch, 2022. "How to Measure the Mental Health of Teachers? Psychometric Properties of the GHQ-12 in a Large Sample of German Teachers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-17, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:15:p:9708-:d:882086
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Reingard Seibt & Steffi Kreuzfeld, 2021. "Influence of Work-Related and Personal Characteristics on the Burnout Risk among Full- and Part-Time Teachers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-17, February.
    2. Nima Motamed & Shiva Edalatian Zakeri & Behnam Rabiee & Mansooreh Maadi & Mahmood Reza Khonsari & Hossein Keyvani & Seyed Hamzeh Hosseini & Farhad Zamani, 2018. "The Factor Structure of the Twelve Items General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): a Population Based Study," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 13(2), pages 303-316, June.
    3. Ailing Fu & Bo Liu & Yu Jiang & Junling Zhao & Guanghui Zhang & Jiwen Liu, 2017. "A Mental Health Survey of Different Ethnic and Occupational Groups in Xinjiang, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, January.
    4. Griffith, Gareth J. & Jones, Kelvyn, 2019. "Understanding the population structure of the GHQ-12: Methodological considerations in dimensionally complex measurement outcomes," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 243(C).
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