The Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF) is a self-report questionnaire assessing positive mental health, comprising 14 items measuring emotional, psychological, and social well-being. The study evaluated its psychometric properties, including reliability, validity, and discriminant validity. Data from a representative sample of 1,662 Dutch adults were analyzed. The MHC-SF showed high internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.89) and moderate test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a three-factor structure for emotional, psychological, and social well-being. These subscales demonstrated convergent validity, correlating with corresponding measures of well-being and functioning. The study also supported the two-continua model, where mental health and mental illness are related but distinct constructs. The MHC-SF demonstrated discriminant validity, with mental health and mental illness showing low to moderate negative correlations. The results suggest that the MHC-SF is a reliable and valid tool for assessing positive mental health. The study also found that the MHC-SF is sensitive to changes in mental health over time, making it useful for tracking mental health outcomes. The findings support the use of the MHC-SF in mental health assessments and highlight the importance of considering both mental health and mental illness in mental health policy and care. The study has implications for promoting positive mental health and improving mental health care. The MHC-SF is a brief, useful self-report questionnaire for assessing positive mental health.The Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF) is a self-report questionnaire assessing positive mental health, comprising 14 items measuring emotional, psychological, and social well-being. The study evaluated its psychometric properties, including reliability, validity, and discriminant validity. Data from a representative sample of 1,662 Dutch adults were analyzed. The MHC-SF showed high internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.89) and moderate test-retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a three-factor structure for emotional, psychological, and social well-being. These subscales demonstrated convergent validity, correlating with corresponding measures of well-being and functioning. The study also supported the two-continua model, where mental health and mental illness are related but distinct constructs. The MHC-SF demonstrated discriminant validity, with mental health and mental illness showing low to moderate negative correlations. The results suggest that the MHC-SF is a reliable and valid tool for assessing positive mental health. The study also found that the MHC-SF is sensitive to changes in mental health over time, making it useful for tracking mental health outcomes. The findings support the use of the MHC-SF in mental health assessments and highlight the importance of considering both mental health and mental illness in mental health policy and care. The study has implications for promoting positive mental health and improving mental health care. The MHC-SF is a brief, useful self-report questionnaire for assessing positive mental health.