Unveiling Psychological Responses to COVID-19: Psychometric Properties of the Mental Impact and Distress Scale in Hong Kong Adults

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic poses substantial challenges to individuals’ physical and mental health. The Mental Impact and Distress Scale: COVID-19 (MIDc-PR) was developed as a transdiagnostic assessment tool to evaluate respondents’ psychological responses to the pandemic. The present study examined the psychometric properties of MIDc-PR within the Chinese context. A total of 1,122 Hong Kong adults completed an online questionnaire including the 24-item MIDc-PR and additional measures assessing situational impact, resilience, and well-being across three separate assessment waves between October 2020 and October 2021. Dimensionality was assessed through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses conducted on two split-half subsamples. Convergent validity was evaluated by examining associations with situational impact, resilience, and well-being. Exploratory factor analysis reduced MIDc-PR to 19 items and supported a two-factor (anticipation and modulation) model in both subsamples, demonstrating good reliability. Both factors showed scalar measurement invariance across subsamples, gender, age groups, and assessment waves. Both factors were significantly associated with higher situational impact and lower resilience and well-being. Participants recruited in 2021 reported lower levels of anticipation and modulation than those recruited in 2020. These findings provide empirical support for the psychometric robustness of MIDc-PR as a valid and reliable tool for assessing psychological responses to COVID-19 among Hong Kong adults.