Depression
SYMPTOM QUESTIONNAIRES
Often times the easiest way for a clinician to determine someone’s symptoms is through a questionnaire
These questionnaires can cover a wide variety of symptoms that represent many different specific disorders.
One of the most common questionnaires used to examine the symptoms of depression is the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)
Individuals are asked to choose which description best describes the way they have felt in the last week.
For example: 0 I do not feel unhappy 1 I feel unhappy 2 I am unhappy 3 I am so unhappy I can’t stand it
Their choices are added to determine the severity of the depression symptoms.
PERSONAL INVENTORIES
Personal inventories are questionnaires used to asses a person’s general way of thinking, feeling, and behaving.
These inventories are used to gather information on people’s well-being, self-concept, attitude and beliefs, way of coping, perceptions of their environment and social resources, and vulnerability.
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is the most widely used personality inventory in professional clinical studies.
The MMPI presents the respondents with sentences describing moral and social attitudes, behaviors, psychological states, and physical conditions.
Participants are asked to respond: true, false, or can’t say (unsure)
Examples: I would rather win than lose in a game. I am never happier than when alone. My hardest battles are with myself. I wish I was not bothered by my thoughts about sex. I am afraid of losing my mind. When I get bored, I like to stir up excitement. People often disappoint me.
Behavioral observation
Clinicians will often use behavioral observation of individuals to assess deficits in their skills or ways of handling situations.
During behavioral observation the clinician will look for specific behaviors and what precedes and follows these behaviors
The observer will look for what situations trigger certain behaviors, such as
Often times the easiest way for a clinician to determine someone’s symptoms is through a questionnaire
These questionnaires can cover a wide variety of symptoms that represent many different specific disorders.
One of the most common questionnaires used to examine the symptoms of depression is the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)
Individuals are asked to choose which description best describes the way they have felt in the last week.
For example: 0 I do not feel unhappy 1 I feel unhappy 2 I am unhappy 3 I am so unhappy I can’t stand it
Their choices are added to determine the severity of the depression symptoms.
PERSONAL INVENTORIES
Personal inventories are questionnaires used to asses a person’s general way of thinking, feeling, and behaving.
These inventories are used to gather information on people’s well-being, self-concept, attitude and beliefs, way of coping, perceptions of their environment and social resources, and vulnerability.
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is the most widely used personality inventory in professional clinical studies.
The MMPI presents the respondents with sentences describing moral and social attitudes, behaviors, psychological states, and physical conditions.
Participants are asked to respond: true, false, or can’t say (unsure)
Examples: I would rather win than lose in a game. I am never happier than when alone. My hardest battles are with myself. I wish I was not bothered by my thoughts about sex. I am afraid of losing my mind. When I get bored, I like to stir up excitement. People often disappoint me.
Behavioral observation
Clinicians will often use behavioral observation of individuals to assess deficits in their skills or ways of handling situations.
During behavioral observation the clinician will look for specific behaviors and what precedes and follows these behaviors
The observer will look for what situations trigger certain behaviors, such as