Further testing of the mental health problems perception questionnaire

Aim of study. This payer reports a two-part study relating to the further p sychometric development of the Mental Health Problems Perceptions Questionn aire. Background. The instrument was developed and used originally in a study to investigate the role of district nurses in caring for people with mental he alth problems, who live in rural settings. It is underpinned by an explicit theoretical framework in which therapeutic commitment, role support and ro le competency are core concepts. Design. A two-part study is described. Part One used a test-retest method t o examine the stability of the instrument on repeated administration. Part Two examined the instrument's internal reliability and construct validity b y calculation of Cronbach's alpha co-efficients and exploratory factor anal ysis. Results. Satisfactory internal reliability for a new instrument was demonst rated. Exploratory factor analysis supported the previously proposed theore tical framework. Significant correlations were demonstrated between the sca les which constitute the instrument, thereby providing further evidence of construct validity. Conclusions. The Mental Health Problems Perceptions Questionnaire provides a potentially useful instrument in relation to future educational, clinical and managerial research.