In India, there

is a INTRODUCTION 5
beused with ease on great paucity of reliable
Western tests are unsophisticated and lowpersonality
literate
and screening tests that
can
complicated
Indian. Cattell (1965) and culture bound to some group of subjects. The le of
calls "for a test extent for use on ancommon
busy people,
inteligible
brief enough to be
acceptable average
to large number
was

mechanical enough for enough for persons of

lowest educational level to of
The need for a relatively untrained assistants to follow and
simple administer".
useful, not only for clinical neuroticism scale is recognized in all psychiatric circles. It is
work in
but has a
larger utility in clinical screening and assessing the progress of treatment
accepted and clinically useful psychiatric research. Neuroticism, though a widely
regard it as propensity inbornconcept,
is rather difficult to define. Most of the clinician
or acquired to have
during time of stress. For our purpose, we have maladjusted pattern of behavior
found the operational definition of
Cattell (Catte!ll, 1965, Scheier and Cattell, 1961)-
which actually differ significantly between clinically"those personality characteristics
judged neurotics and
quite useful, as it also keeps in view the relative cultural context of the normals
patient. Afterall,
neurosis in our country is only that which is
recognized neurosis by our physicians
as
and psychiatrists. In other words, if a
symptom or a group of symptoms is recognized
by majority of us as neurotic in our country, it does not really matter whether it resembles.
European or American neurosis. Accordingly a test which claims to measure
neuroticism in this country should, be such that it measures symptoms which are actually
perceived by our patients and are recognized by our doctors.
In Functional psychiatric illnesses and more specifically in neurotic illnesses in
India where insight and ego strength is retained, disturbances are expressed more
This is
through physical complaints rather than emotional/psychological complaints.
manifestation
so because of the concept of illness, and deeprooted accepted mode of
disturbances and behavioural
of it through somatization. Nevertheless psychological
of such illnesses are considered to follow it. Cornell
dysfunctions which are concomitants
al. 1949; Wig, Pershad & Verma,
Medical Index-Health Questionnaire (Brodmanet
somatic and emotional complaints, is
more
contains 195 items of
1973) which other currently available
in India aS Compared to any
acceptable in clinic population characteristics
true because of its two main
This is
of neuroticism. particularly
complaints and (b) items
measure are
somatic/physical/body
more on
VIz it emphasizes
(a)
or less in colloquial
language.
Simple and brief and more
 4 Mamwal torPGI HQN-1-vw
Development of Questionnaire

PGI-HQ N-1 precedes the developmont ot a completely

indigenoist ol (PGI.H
N-2 by Vema, 1978). It is basOd on M-tieah
auestionnaire and inco
characteristic as envisaged by altel (vicde supra). While develorbingit orporat HG the
(PGI
first ofall those items of C. M. I. (Brodman et al. 1949; Verma and
separated out which were endorsed by more HON),
Wig, 197A.1)
Verma, 1973b) were

psychiatric patients in our past records of a large number of protocols.

than Niyand
Thes
were then suitably modified and translated so as to be nearer
to
patientitems
description of symptoms. Cross cultural factors were also kept in mind whiletra
transIslating
n
the items and item number was greatly reduced, keeping only those items
which
simple to understand and had high discriminatory value i.e. psychiatric Vs normal
medical group of subjects (Verma, VWig and Pershad, 1974 ab; Verma, and
1974; Wig
Vema, 1973 abcd: 1964 etc.). Finally it consisted of 38 items divided intoa (rh
ysical
distress) and B (psychological distress) sections with 16 and 22 items, respectiveh
Standardization
ely.
Details of the standardization sample etc. are given elsewhere (Wig &Vem
ma,
1974 abc). The summary of important results are given here. Reliability of the test veeas
examined using 'test-retest' and 'split half methods and was found to besigrnificanta
.01 level of significance. The correlations of physical and psychological sections wera
more with total score rather than between physical and psychological sections. The
reliability results have been given in Table 1.
TABLE 1
Reliability and Intercorrelation
Correlation
Test-retest (Full Scale) 1-2 weeks interval 0.88

Split hal-fulltest (corected for length) 0.86

Intercorrelations
-Physical and total 0.81

-Psychological and total 0.86

-Physical and psychological sections 0.56

Statistical Results Manual for PGI
The Health
Questionnaire N-1 was
H.Q.N-1-vwP5
--

Normals (N 286),
= administered on a
Neurotics (N representative
125) and
Psychotics (N =71), Total sarmple
482.
=
of

Sample was
The statistical results are
presented in Table 2.
TABLE 2
Statistical Results of H.Q. N-1
Sr.
Sample N Part A
Part B
No.
Mean SD Mean SD
Normals 286 3.00 2.96 4.96 3.93
. Neurotics 125 8.35 3.72 10.79 4.41
JIL. Psychotics 71 6.95 4.64 9.90 6.85

Total 482 6.10 3.77 8.55 5.06

TABLE 3

Statistical Results for Full H.Q. N-1

Sr. No. Sample N Mean SD

Normals 286 3.98 3.44

Neurotics 125 9.57 4.06

ll.

71 8.42 5.74
Il. Psychotics
7.32 4.41
Total 482
 Manual for
TABLE 13 PGI H.Q
Norms for N-1-vw
Core Total Health,
Interpretation of the Level of 13

Psysical Health & Health

1-60
Sr. No. Range of z-Scores Psychological Health)
Grade
93 Level of Health
09
26 1 +2-01 and above
G
42 Extremely Poor Health
9
2 +1-26 to +2-00 F
Very Poor Health

3 +0-51 to + 1.25 E Poor Health

4. -0-50 to +0-50 D Average/Moderate Health

-1.25 to - 0-51 C Good Health

5.

Very Good Health

B
6. -2-00to-1-26

Extremely Good Health

-2-01 and below A

7.
 Qvestoaw TTus

AeNARÍ Aor AGI H.Q. N-1-vw

*

Advantages of HQ (1974). 1

This test hRs definite advantages over other similar tests in Hindi as () it is a sho
hort, C nP s y c h o l , 1 ,
K .

simple test with low difficulty value for ites, (i) it can be used with iliterate a7a,
S .

ate, (1978a)
unsphisticated population also (il) t is medically oriented, hence more acceptable
able
to the patients population. (v) it has high internal consislency, reliabilitly and valicity,f K .
PsH

(v ofRajasthan
vema,
S.

thas high discriminatory power to separate the psychiatric population from the normal
(1978
9PN. and (vi) its utility has been demonstrated in a number of studies with varier K.

S.

poulations viz. Nomal, neurotic, chronic uremia, vasectomy cases, etc. Higher score Vema,
R e s e a r c hC e l l .

sualy indicates greater chances of developing pyschiatric symptoms. It also reflects Pe

a n d

K.
a need for early psychiatric help and follow-up care. V e ro
mfat
S.
, he literatur

REFERENCES
methodologic
Srodman. K.; Erdmann, A. J. and Wolff, H. G. (1949). Cornell Medical Index Health Psychologica

Questionnaire Manual. Cornell Univ. Med. College, N. Y.

and
S. K.
Cattell, R. B. (1965). The Scientific Study of Personality Penguin Books Inc. Baltimore,
vermia.
Vema,

some
of i
U. S.A. on

Verma, S.K.
a
Garg. K.L: Wig, N. N.; Chugh, K. S. and Verma, S. K. (1978). Psychiatric aspects of
chronic uremia. India.J. Psychiat., 20, 43-47. Hindi. Indie

Garg. K.L: Wig, N. N.; Chugh, K. S.; Verma, S. K. and Menon, D. K. (1978). Psychiatric Verma, S. K.,
S. K.;
aspects of haemodialysis. J. Assoc. of Physicians of India, 24, 483-489. Urban Po

Pershad, D.; Kaushal, P. and Verma, S. K. (1973). Neuroticism, Scores of mothers of 109-113.
mentally retarded and of neurotic children. Indian J. Ment. Retard., 6, 24-27.
Verma, S. F
Prasad, M.; Verma, S. K. and Pershad, D. (1974). Inter-relationships amongsome and Ps
measures of personality in psychiatric patients. Indian J. Psychiat., 16, 244-251. 1,104-