Adaptation of the Russian version of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7

Aim. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder–7 is the «gold standard» for assessing anxiety in clinical and population studies. The aim of this study was to adapt the Russian version of the GAD–7. Method. In this cross–sectional study, 1,130 respondents participated. They were recruited through accidental sampling. The participants completed the Russian versions of the GAD–7 and the Patient Health Questionnaire–9 (PHQ–9) measuring the severity of depressive symptomatology. Results. The factor structure of the Russian version of the GAD–7 corresponds to both a unidimensional model that measures the general anxiety score and a two–dimensional model that highlights the cognitive–emotional and somatic components of anxiety. The adapted scale has high internal reliability (α = 0,93) and convergent validity, confirmed through statistically significant positive correlations between the GAD–7 and the PHQ–9 scores. Conclusion. The Russian version of the GAD–7 is valid and reliable and can be recommended for assessing anxiety in the general population. Avenues for further psychometric examining lie in expanding validation procedures and involving clinical samples to prove the specificity and sensitivity of the GAD–7, and to determine its diagnostic capabilities in clinical research and practice.

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