David Colin Cicero

Understanding sex and ethnoracial group differences in psychopathology is critical to identify mental health disparities. However, the validity of these group differences is often uninterrogated. One threat to validity is measurement bias, where specific items may be more likely to be endorsed by a specific group even without differences in underlying psychopathology. We examined measurement bias using invariance testing in the Adult Self-Report (ASR) in adult parents of children in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study ( N = 8,608). The ASR dimensions demonstrated invariance across sex and ethnoracial groupings, except for Antagonism and Social Maladjustment. These results suggest that some dimensions of the ASR are largely invariant across sex and ethnoracial groupings in this sample, and that group differences in measured scores are likely unconfounded by measurement bias. We report sex and ethnoracial group differences in psychopathology dimensions and discuss limitations of parental psychopathology assessment in the ABCD study.

Current classification systems for mental disorders such as the DSM-5 and the ICD-11 are increasingly being criticized for not adequately reflecting the complexity of mental health problems. Particularly problematic are the implicit orientation toward the medical disease model, the suboptimal assignment of symptoms to diagnoses, and the categorical distinction from mental health. In response to these challenges, a Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) has been under development within a consortium for several years—an empirically based, hierarchically organized, and dimensional model for describing mental health problems. In this article, the HiTOP model is made comprehensively accessible to the German-speaking public for the first time. After criticizing established classification systems, we first explain the basic methodological principles and present the current HiTOP model. We then report on new studies and considerations regarding the validation and further development of the model and explain how the HiTOP dimensions can be assessed in diagnostic practice. In the discussion, we clarify links to alternative approaches to the conceptualization of mental disorders, elaborate the implications of the HiTOP approach for future research and practice, and address research gaps and limitations.

Objectives: Basic self‐disturbance is an abnormality in subjective self‐experience and a core feature of schizophrenia. The Inventory of Psychotic‐Like Anomalous Self‐Experiences (IPASE) is a self‐report measure designed to assess basic self‐disturbance. Despite its clinical utility, a Japanese version has not yet been established. This study aimed to develop a Japanese version of the IPASE and evaluate its reliability and validity. Methods: The study included 182 participants (83 individuals with schizophrenia and 99 healthy controls). The Japanese version of the IPASE was administered to all participants, along with the PANSS and YMRS, to assess validity. Result: All IPASE domain scores and the total score were significantly higher in the schizophrenia group than in healthy controls. The IPASE total score showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's α > 0.80). In the schizophrenia group, the PANSS positive subscale, general psychopathology subscale, and total scores were all significantly positively correlated with IPASE scores. These positive correlations with the positive subscale support convergent validity. ROC analysis indicated that the IPASE total score had good discriminative ability for schizophrenia diagnosis (AUC = 0.851). Conclusion: The Japanese version of the IPASE demonstrated high reliability and validity.

Decades of research show a clear link between family factors and psychopathology. Family functioning varies across cultures, suggesting potential cultural differences in the association between family factors and psychopathology. In addition, assessing family functioning generally involves tools not systematically validated for diverse cultural backgrounds. Using the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development ^SM data ( N = 11,864), this study found: (a) full scalar invariance was tenable for the Children’s Reports of Parental Behavior Inventory (CRPBI) and Prodromal Questionnaire—Brief Child Version (PQ-BC) across race/ethnicity, but not for the Family Environment Scale (FES) and Parental Monitoring Survey (PMQ); (b) the CRPBI and PMQ were significantly associated with the PQ-BC, and (c) all three family scales had equivalent relations with the PQ-BC across groups. This highlights the importance of evaluating scales for measurement invariance across race/ethnicity. Results also help to connect specific family factors to the etiology of psychosis risk among U.S. children and adolescents.

Identification and implementation of effective methods for reducing racial/ethnic bias and disparities in legal settings are paramount in the United States and other countries. One procedure originally thought to reduce bias in legal decisions is the use of risk assessment instruments, which is now being heavily scrutinized. Measurement invariance, a latent trait technique, is a robust method for assessing one form of bias. Measurement invariance involves determining whether risk items in an instrument appear to be functioning the same between racial or other groups. Thus, the present study examined measurement invariance of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY) between non-Latino Black and White youths to examine racial bias. We expected the SAVRY to be invariant (lacking measurement bias) between Black and White youths. The sample included 687 Black and 361 White youths, and the study used a large, multistate data set of SAVRYs conducted by probation officers. We conducted measurement invariance testing in a series of hierarchical steps including testing configural and scalar invariance. The SAVRY demonstrated scalar invariance (equal thresholds for ratings from "low" to "moderate" and "moderate" to "high") for all items except one-community disorganization. The findings lend further credibility to the SAVRY, and the structured professional judgment approach, as a method to assess violence risk and case planning needs among youths involved in the legal system. These findings provide more confidence that significant differences in SAVRY risk level or items between Black and White youths are not based in measurement bias, with the exception of the community disorganization item. Potential fixes discussed include eliminating or deemphasizing this item in final risk level ratings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) is a nosology that aims to improve upon traditional diagnostic systems by conceptualizing psychopathology dimensionally and hierarchically. A major unanswered question about HiTOP is whether and how the system can be used effectively in clinical practice. The current study reports the efficacy of the Clinical Translation Workgroup’s first workshop in facilitating the implementation of HiTOP in clinical practice. The 6-hour workshop is now available in recorded format for continuing education. It includes an introduction to HiTOP and describes the use of HiTOP in assessment/measurement, case conceptualization, treatment planning, and with diverse and underserved populations. At baseline, participants rated the usefulness of HiTOP similar to the DSM but reported more knowledge about how to use the DSM for a range of clinical activities, such as treatment planning, monitoring patient outcomes, and documenting/billing for services. After the workshop, participants rated HiTOP as more useful than the DSM for most tasks and reported equivalent knowledge about the DSM and HiTOP for all tasks except billing for services. These results suggest that training in the clinical application of HiTOP increases familiarity with and confidence in the utility of the model among clinicians. Future work will continue to refine the workshop, evaluate its effectiveness, expand its scope to include additional topics, and develop more tools for incorporating HiTOP into clinical practice.

The current classification systems for mental disorders, DSM-5 and ICD-11, have been criticized for their lack of structural validity and their arbitrary categorical distinction between mental disorders and mental health. In response, the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) consortium has emerged to propose an alternative model for conceptualizing psychopathology based on empirical correlations between dimensions of mental health problems. A major project within the consortium over the last few years has been the development of the HiTOP Self-Report (HiTOP-SR), which aims to comprehensively cover all aspects of the HiTOP model within one measure. This paper presents the German adaptation of the HiTOP-SR (including an experimental version of the harmful substance use module) and provides a detailed psychometric analysis based on a sample of 1,049 individuals from the general population, focusing primarily on structural validity. We found that the vast majority of the HiTOP-SR scales are consistent with the goal of reliably measuring a unidimensional, continuously distributed, and distinct latent construct. Furthermore, the latent structure of the HiTOP-SR scales largely preserved higher-level constructs from the current HiTOP model, albeit in slightly modified or combined forms. These findings suggest that the German adaptation of the HiTOP-SR is a well-developed self-report measure that is consistent with the methodological principles of HiTOP and provides a comprehensive multidimensional assessment of mental health problems in the general population. However, further research is needed to generalize these findings across cultures and contexts and to refine the measure for dissemination into diagnostic practice. We provide detailed recommendations for future revisions of the HiTOP-SR.