Assessing quality of life among university students: psychometric evidence of the EUROHIS-QOL in a Latin American context.

BACKGROUND

Quality of life is an important indicator of wellbeing in university populations, where academic, social, and psychological demands may influence health perceptions. The European Health Interview Survey-Quality of Life Index (EUROHIS-QOL) is a brief quality-of-life instrument derived from the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL) framework; however, psychometric evidence in Latin American university students remains limited. This study evaluated the structural validity, reliability, and measurement invariance of the EUROHIS-QOL in Colombian university students through the comparison of alternative factorial models.

METHODS

A cross-sectional methodological study was conducted among undergraduate students from a private university in Cali, Colombia (N = 614). Confirmatory factor analysis using the weighted least squares mean and variance adjusted estimator (WLSMV) evaluated three competing structures: unidimensional, correlated two-factor, and bifactor models, followed by a theoretically justified model re-specification. Model fit was assessed using the Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI), Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA), and Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR). Reliability was examined using ordinal alpha (α), McDonald's omega (ω), composite reliability (CR), and average variance extracted (AVE). Measurement invariance across gender, comorbidity status, and employment status was assessed using multigroup CFA.

RESULTS

The original unidimensional and correlated two-factor models demonstrated inadequate fit, whereas the bifactor model failed to converge. A theoretically re-specified unidimensional model including residual covariance between overall quality of life and satisfaction with health demonstrated excellent fit (χ 2 = 44.15, df = 19, CFI = 0.983, TLI = 0.975, RMSEA = 0.046, SRMR = 0.022). Reliability indices were high (α = 0.907, ω = 0.901, CR = 0.908), and convergent validity was supported (AVE = 0.606). Full measurement invariance was supported across evaluated groups.

CONCLUSION

The EUROHIS-QOL demonstrated satisfactory psychometric performance in Colombian university students, supporting its use as a brief and reliable measure of quality of life in higher education settings. Findings support an essentially unidimensional representation following theoretically justified model refinement and indicate comparable measurement across relevant sociodemographic groups.