Background and Aims

The central aim of this study is to develop, test and validate an Adolescent Mental Health Related Quality of Life outcome measure (AQOL-MH) in Spanish.Research has shown that a reduced Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) is associated with both physical illnesses and mental disorders. Moreover, findings based on both children and adult populations have indicated that the extent of impairment in HRQOL associated with mental disorders is comparable with the impairment associated with physical illness. There has been very little study of HRQOL in either adolescent mental health or in Latino youth. This study will be the first to develop an outcome measure that will serve mental health Latino adolescent consumers.

 

The AQOL-MH instrument in Spanish, will be specifically designed for adolescents with psychiatric disorders such as ADHD, MDD, GAD, and CD/ODD. This measure might be a more effective and more efficient than the generic ones currently available in providing knowledge of significant differences among groups and changes resulting from mental health treatments or interventions.

 

Funding Acknowledgement

This research project is funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

 

Investigators

 

Publications

  • Chavez LM, Matías-Carrelo L, Barrio C, & Canino G. (2007). The cultural adaptation of the youth quality of life instrument-research version for Latino children and adolescents. J Child Family Studies, 16, 75-89.

 

Presentations

  • Chavez, L. M. (2010, April). Understanding QOL in ADHD and ODD/CD Adolescents. Poster session presented at The Quality of Behavioral Healthcare: A drive for Change Through Research. Clearwater, FL.

 

Questionnaires

  • The Youth Quality of Life for Adolescents- Research Version (YQOL-R; Edwards et al., 2002; Patrick et al., 2002)