A Cross-sectional Pilot Study Evaluating the Validity and Reliability of the MASTISHQ CoreScan-Surface Module as a Digital Mental Health Intervention
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background: Digital tools for psychiatric screening have the potential to improve scalability and efficiency, especially in settings with limited resources. This pilot study explores how well MASTISHQ CoreScan-Surface, a semi-automated digital mental health screening instrument, performs compared to traditional clinical diagnoses made by psychiatrists. Methodology: A total of 46 participants completed assessments using MASTISHQ CoreScan-Surface, followed by independent evaluations conducted by psychiatrists. The study examined various psychometric properties, including sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value (NPV), and inter-rater reliability (using Cohen’s kappa), and internal consistency (via Cronbach’s alpha). To visualize the results, ROC and radar plots were employed to interpret diagnostic performance. Results: The results showed that MASTISHQ CoreScan-Surface achieved perfect sensitivity (100%) and NPV (100%), with a Cohen’s kappa over 0.84, indicating strong agreement with the clinical diagnoses. The internal consistency was solid, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.81 across different diagnostic areas, and the specificity was 90%, which is acceptable for screening purposes. The structured digital format and randomized questions likely supported the reliability of the tool. However, limitations included a small sample size from an urban setting and the lack of assessment of digital literacy among participants. Conclusion: MASTISHQ CoreScan-Surface shows promising validity and reliability as a digital mental health screening option suitable for both clinical and community environments. Further studies involving larger and more diverse populations, along with long-term follow-up, are recommended to confirm its generalizability and predictive accuracy over time.
Source: Annals of Indian Psychiatry
Authors: J. V. Ashwin, Priya Ranjan Avinash, Anshu Prasad, Mohit Kumar Shahi, Rajiv K. Mishra, Abhinav Abhishek
Language: English
Subfield: Applied Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4415276290