Psychometric properties of Trait Anxiety Inventory in patients with mental disorders in Chinese people

State-Trait Anxiety Inventory is one of the most widely used subjective measures of general anxiety. In China, there were no studies focusing on Trait Anxiety Inventory (TAI) scores and the psychometric properties of the TAI in mental disorders patients with different socio-demographic characteristics. Investigators consecutively enrolled participants who met the criteria among inpatients in a psychiatric hospital, and the study was conducted during the remission period of the patients’ hospitalization. The differences in TAI scores of patients with different characteristics were analyzed and compared. And the reliability and validity of TAI were reported. A total of 519 participants took part in the survey with a mean age of 32.85. The mean score of TAI was 45.74. There were statistically significant differences in the TAI scores of patients with different diagnosis, education levels and household income. Internal consistency and split-half reliability of the TAI was credible with Cronbach’s α = 0.883 and r = 0.874. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) yielded two factors that accounted for 53.09% of the total variance. The factor attribution of the item was consistent with the original scale. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) for the two-factor model of the TAI revealed a Comparative Fit Index (CFI) of 0.901 and a Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) of 0.075. The results of measurement invariance analysis in different mental disorders showed that the ΔCFI and ΔTLI were both less than 0.01. Trait anxiety scores of patients with mental disorders are higher than those of people without mental health issues. The TAI demonstrates an appropriate reliability and validity when used in patients with different mental disorders and socio-demographic characteristics in Chinese people.