Development of the Gothenburg Well-Being Scale in Late Adolescence: The Grow Up 1990 Gothenburg Study

The objective was to update the factor structure of the Gothenburg Well-Being scale (GWB) for use in older adolescents. A cross-sectional population of final-year high school students (17–20 years; N = 5395) completed three questionnaires with classroom administration as part of a larger investigation into health and lifestyle. Students completed the GWB, which is composed of 43 polar-opposite adjective VAS scales, the RS-11 resilience questionnaire and an 8-item Body Image scale. Model fit to the previously data-derived six-factor model (GWB Child) was tested. The data were then randomly divided into training and test datasets and a theoretically hypothesised model was tested and revised. Model 1 did not have adequate model fit. The theoretically hypothesised Model 2 had better fit; however, a modified model (Model 3 GWB Adolescent), using nine questions loading on factors of Mood, Stress Balance and Activation with one general factor of Well-being, was found to meet all model fit criteria (GFI .978; TLI .970, CFI .980; RMSEA .059). Measurement invariance was attested across datasets and gender. Internal reliability was satisfactory (Cronbach’s alpha 0.59). Convergent validity was demonstrated by correlation with resilience (r = .42) and body image (r = .35). Discriminant known-groups analysis gave results in the predicted direction for gender. The findings contribute to the validity of the GWB Adolescent, which explores relevant elements of well-being in late adolescence and can be used for group comparisons. Further testing is required to identify relationships with independent aspects of late adolescent life and clinical variables.