A national school-based screening program for mental health problems among children aged 6 to 12 years in Iran: scale development and psychometric evaluation

ABSTRACT Schools are an ideal setting in which to measure and promote mental health difficulties. The aim of present study was to develop the Nemad Electronic Mental-Health Assessment Devices for Children (NEMAD-C) aged 6 to 12 years in Iran. A sample of parents and teachers (N = 10,163) were recruited to complete the parent and teacher reports. Totally, explorative and confirmatory factor analyses showed that the eight-factor model provides a better fit for both parental report and teacher report versions. Results revealed a screening tool consisting of eight dimensions: child abuse risk, self-harm, anxiety, depression, disruptive behavior disorders, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders, academic achievement deficit, and self-regulation. Findings showed that the internal consistency coefficients of the subscales were high, and convergent validity was evidenced by significant correlations with theoretically related constructs. Therefore, the NEMAD-C has adequate reliability and validity and could be used for multi-dimensional assessment of mental health problems in Iran.