Evaluating the reliability and validity of the Questionnaire on Well-Being: a validation study for a clinically informed measurement of subjective well-being

• Published in: Cognitive behaviour therapy 2024-09, p.1-23
• Main Authors: Hlynsson, Jón Ingi, Sjöberg, Anders, Ström, Lars, Carlbring, Per
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1650-6073; 1651-2316; 1651-2316
• DOI: 10.1080/16506073.2024.2402992

Researchers and clinicians are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of assessing positive functioning to inform clinical outcomes. This paper evaluates the Questionnaire on Well-Being (QWB, available for free https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/GSC3R), a clinically informed instrument that assesses subjective well-being, across two studies. Study One, consisting of treatment-seeking individuals in an assertiveness training sample (  = 495), explored the factorial structure of the QWB, assessed the four-week test-retest reliability, criterion-related validity, and identified a preliminary cutoff point for the QWB with clinical significance. Study Two, including participants from the general public (  = 1561), confirmed the factorial structure of the QWB and further evaluated criterion-related validity. The results provided support for a unidimensional structure for the QWB. Furthermore, the QWB exhibited excellent internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.93 and 0.94 in Study One and Two, respectively), high test-retest reliability (ICC  = .50 at a four-week follow-up in Study One), and appropriate criterion-related validity demonstrating positive correlations with positive affect and negative correlations with psychopathology. Finally, a cutoff point on the QWB below 50 was associated with marked psychopathology. These findings provide preliminary support for the usage of the QWB in clinical and non-clinical settings, establishing the QWB as a reliable indicator of subjective well-being.