Investigating the Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument (MAYSI-2)

• Published date: 01 August 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X221086575
• Author: Seyedeh Fatemeh Hashemi,Simin Hosseinian,Abbas Abdollahi,Farzad Jalali
• Date: 01 August 2023
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X221086575

International Journal of

Offender Therapy and

Comparative Criminology

2023, Vol. 67(10-11) 1120 –1138

© The Author(s) 2022

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DOI: 10.1177/0306624X221086575

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Article

Investigating the

Psychometric Properties

of the Persian Version of

the Massachusetts Youth

Screening Instrument

(MAYSI-2)

Seyedeh Fatemeh Hashemi1, Simin Hosseinian1,

Abbas Abdollahi1, and Farzad Jalali2

Abstract

This study was done to prepare a Persian version of the MAYSI-2 and investigate

its psychometric properties among the adolescents of the Juvenile Correction and

Rehabilitation Center in Mashhad. By available study sample 329 male adolescents

were selected. The findings showed that the Cronbach’s alpha values for subscales

were from .74 to .91. Compound reliability was also obtained in different scales

between .72 and .98 indicating the optimal reliability of the scale. The CVR and CVI

indicating the appropriate content validity. The results of CFA showed that the factor

loading of the items was more than .5. The scale had good structural validity. The GFI

of .90, IFI of .91, and RMSEA of .072 were all within the acceptable limits. Convergent

and divergent validity indicators showed that the subscales benefited from the

convergent validity. Our results showed that the Persian version of the MAYSI-2 had

desirable psychometric properties. Therefore, it can be used for assessing mental

health problems of juvenile delinquent and upcoming research.

Keywords

psychometric properties, MAYSI-2, Persian version

1Department of Counseling, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran

2Negahe Mosbat Social Health Institute, Mashhad, Iran

Corresponding Author:

Simin Hosseinian, Department of Counseling, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Alzahra University,

Tehran 1993893973, Iran.

Email: hosseinian@alzahra.ac.ir

1086575IJOXXX10.1177/0306624X221086575International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative CriminologyHashemi et al.

research-article2022

Hashemi et al. 1121

Adolescence is a period of growth, conflict, challenging values, confusion about

choice and decision-making, ambiguity in the face of physical changes, and also a

strong need to be accepted by the peers (Reitz et al., 2014). During this period, adoles-

cents are likely at risk of committing various forms of minor delinquency (Kapetanovic

et al., 2019). Colins et al. (2010) reviewed 15 studies on the mental health issues of the

delinquent juveniles. Their findings showed that the behavioral disorders, drug use

disorders, confronting disobedience, attention deficit/hyperactivity are the most com-

mon disorders among the delinquent adolescents. Although the rate of internal disor-

ders (anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder) was lower, they had still

significant effects on these adolescents. They also stressed that detained juveniles have

significant mental health needs that should be met through effective mental health

services.

Given that mental health problems and delinquent behaviors occur frequently at the

same time, juvenile justice systems and mental health administrators must work

together to address the juvenile delinquency problems (Zajac et al., 2015). There are

many approaches to assess the mental health problems in the adolescent justice sys-

tems, such as Washington State Juvenile Court Assessment (WSJCA), Achenbach

System of Empirically -Based Assessment (ASEBA), and Suicidal Ideation

Questionnaire (Vincent, 2012). Although, these scales have made significant progress

in the mental health studies of the delinquent juveniles but they have some limitations.

For example, most of these scales measure one or two dimensions of the mental health.

They need clinical training and have a long response time for screening. Screening tools

should be effective and comprehensive to screen the adolescents who need serious psy-

chiatric services or at risk for suicide ideation and may also be addicted to the drugs

(Ashcroft et al., 2004). The Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument-second version

(MAYSI-2) meets a combination of these needs. This instrument includes scales for

assessing the drug abuse, suicidal ideation and symptoms, such as depression, anxiety,

and so on. Another advantages of this scale are answering in 15 minutes and no need to

clinical training. It was also designed especially for delinquent juveniles (Grisso &

Barnum, 2014). There are no scales that directly assess mental health of juveniles in

Iran. the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) was previously used for delinquent juve-

niles (e.g., Barshan & Kobra, 2017; Behroozi et al., 2018; Razmkhah et al., 2013).

Therefore, it seems necessary to investigate the psychometric properties of the MAYSI-2

due to the positive aspects as a screening scale for the delinquent juveniles.

The second version of MAYSI-2 was published by Grisso and Barnum, which

includes seven subscales (Grisso et al., 2001). The psychometric properties of the

MAYSI-2 have been investigated in several countries. In the US Russell et al. (2017);

Shulman et al. (2016) and (Archer et al., 2010) showed that MAYSI-2 scale interaction

were similar to those reported in the MAYSI-2 manuals and has good convergent valid-

ity. Colins et al. (2015) in a study conducted in Netherlands showed that the psychomet-

ric properties of the Dutch version of the MAYSI-2 were promising. Lennox et al.

(2015) studied the convergent and discriminant validity of the MAYSI-2 among the

young male offenders in UK. The result showed that the MAYSI-2 has good convergent

validity. Reilly et al. (2019) evaluated the validity of the MAYSI-2 in the Scottish