Criterion validity of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES-D): Results from a community-based sample of older subjects in The Netherlands (original) (raw)

Validation of the Eight-Item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) Among Older Adults

The aim of the present study was to examine the factor structure and psychometric properties of the 8-item short version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D) in a large sample of European older adults. Data from The European Social Survey (ESS Round 6 Edition 1.1) provided the basis for this study (5,774 Males and 7,258 Females). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided support for a single factor structure. The results from multi-group confirmatory factor analyses revealed that the factor structure of the CES-D 8 is invariant across sexes, including invariance of item intercepts, item residuals, and item factor loadings. Moreover, the results provided support for the nomological validity of the scale. These results suggest that the shorter 8-item CES-D scale is a valid and reliable instrument of depression and extends the list of available instruments for screening depression among older adults.

The two-year course of late-life depression; results from the Netherlands study of depression in older persons

BMC Psychiatry, 2015

Background: We aimed to examine the course of depression during 2-year follow-up in a group clinically depressed older persons. Subsequently, we studied which socio-demographic and clinical characteristics predict a depression diagnoses at 2-year follow-up. Methods: Data were used from the Netherlands Study of Depression in Older persons (NESDO; N = 510). Diagnoses of depression DSM-IV-TR criteria were available from 285 patients at baseline and at 2-year follow-up. Severity of the depressive symptoms, as assessed with the Inventory of Depressive Symptoms (IDS), was obtained from 6-monthly postal questionnaires. Information about socio-demographic and clinical variables was obtained from the baseline measurement.

Psychometric properties of a short form of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D-10) scale for screening depressive symptoms in healthy community dwelling older adults

General hospital psychiatry, 2017

The 10-item Center for the Epidemiological Studies of Depression Short Form (CES-D-10) is a widely used self-report measure of depression symptomatology. The aim of this study is to investigate the psychometric properties of the CES-D-10 in healthy community dwelling older adults. The sample consists of 19,114 community-based individuals residing in Australia and the United States who participated in the ASPREE trial baseline assessment. All individuals were free of any major illness at the time. We evaluated construct validity by performing confirmatory factor analysis, examined measurement invariance across country and gender followed by evaluating item discrimination bias in age, gender, race, ethnicity and education level, and assessing internal consistency. High item-total correlations and Cronbach's alpha indicated high internal consistency. The factor analyses suggested a unidimensional factor structure. Construct validity was supported in the overall sample, and by count...

Are different measures of depressive symptoms in old age comparable? An analysis of the CES-D and Euro-D scales in 13 countries

International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 2015

The Centre for Epidemiologic Studies of Depression (CES-D) and the Euro-D are commonly used depressive symptom scales but their comparability has not been assessed to date. This article aims to contribute to the literature comparing the drivers of depression in old age across countries by examining whether CES-D (in its eight-item short version) and Euro-D are comparable. Data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE, N=15,487) covering 13 countries was used to examine the scales' distributional properties, systematic differences between population subgroups, sensitivity and specificity, and associations with established risk factors for depression in old age. CES-D and Euro-D were strongly correlated (r=0.6819 (p<0.000). However, agreement between the two scales was moderate. There were systematic discrepancies in scores by demographic characteristics. CES-D captures a more extreme pool of depressed individuals than Euro-D. Although associations with risk factors are always in the same direction, they are often stronger for CES-D than Euro-D. Findings highlight the need be cautious when comparing depression levels and associations with risk factors between surveys using different measures of depressive symptoms.

Depression among older people in Europe: the EURODEP studies

World psychiatry : official journal of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA), 2004

The data from nine centres in Europe which had used the Geriatric Mental Scale (GMS) AGECAT were analysed to compare prevalence of diagnoses in subjects aged 65 years and over living in the community. Levels of depressive illness were: Iceland 8.8%, Liverpool 10.0%; Zaragoza 10.7%; Dublin 11.9%; Amsterdam 12.0%; Berlin 16.5%; London 17.3%; Verona 18.3% and Munich 23.6%. Taking all levels of depression, five high (Amsterdam, Berlin, Munich, London and Verona) and four low (Dublin, Iceland, Liverpool, Zaragoza) scoring centres were identified. Meta-analysis of all 13,808 subjects yielded a mean level of depression of 12.3% (95% CI 11.8-12.9), 14.1% for women (95% CI 13.5-14.8) and 8.6% for men (95% CI 7.9-9.3). Symptom levels varied between centres: 40% of the total study population in Amsterdam reported depressive mood against only 26% in Zaragoza. To incorporate studies from other centres using other methods for depression identification, the EURO-D scale was developed from 12 items...

Validation of the 8-item Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale in a cohort of community-dwelling older people: data from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA)

European Geriatric Medicine, 2018

Background The aim of this study was to validate the 8-item Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-8) against the 20-item version (CES-D-20) in a large sample of community-dwelling older people. Methods Scales were compared for correlation and internal consistency. The ideal cutoff score for the CES-D-8 was determined by comparing scores ranging from 7 to 12 on the CES-D-8 to CES-D-20. Results 8033 participants were included. The Spearman coefficient between the scales was 0.8980 indicating high degree of correlation. At a score of 9/24, the sensitivity and specificity of the CES-D-8 were 98 and 83%, respectively. The Cohen's j for a score of 9 was 0.7855, indicating strong agreement and the ROC area was 0.88. Conclusion When compared to the CES-D-20, the CES-D-8 is a valid and reliable measure of depressive symptoms in community-dwelling older people, and a score of 9 can be used to identify those with clinically significant symptoms.

Emergence and persistence of late life depression: a 3-year follow-up of the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam

Journal of Affective Disorders, 2001

Background: The present study was designed to assess onset and persistence of late-life depression, systematically comparing the factors associated with prevalence, onset and prognosis. Methods: The data were derived from a large (n 5 2200), random, age and sex stratified sample of the elderly (55-85 years) in The Netherlands. Using a 3-year, prospective longitudinal design, both the onset and the persistence of depression were assessed. Depression was measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Risk factors associated with prevalence, onset and persistence were compared using both bivariate and multivariate analyses. Results: In those not depressed at index assessment, the onset of depression was 9.7%. Among those depressed at baseline, persistence occurred in 50.4%. Risk factors predicting onset were almost identical to those associated with prevalence. Persistence was predicted by very few factors (external locus of control and chronic physical illness). Conclusions: The data suggest that cross-sectional studies are biased due to their overrepresenting chronic depressive episodes. However, the risk factors derived from cross-sectional studies do seem to adequately reflect factors associated with onset. The prognosis is not adequately predicted by variables usually included in epidemiological studies of late life depression. It is speculated that including more biological correlates of depression and data concerning positive life-changes may improve our understanding of the prognosis of late life depression.