Beck Depression Inventory

Created by Dr. Aaron T. Beck and first published as an original scientific paper in 1961, the Beck Depression Inventory (or BDI, BDI-II) is a self-report inventory comprising of 21 multiple choice type questions. It is considered as one of the most widely used instruments for measuring the severity of depression.

The Beck Depression Inventory is designed as an instrument for determining a diagnosis of depression in adults ages 17 to 80. As such, the items or questions all relate to depression symptoms, including hopelessness and irritability, cognitions such as guilt or feelings of being punished. In addition, the Beck Depression Inventory is also composed of items relating to the physical symptoms of depression, such as fatigue, weight loss, and lack of interest in sex.

Three Versions of Beck Depression Inventory

When it was first published in 1961, the original Beck Depression Inventory was comprised of 21 questions about how the subject was feeling in the last week. For each question, there are at least four possible answer choices, ranging in intensity, with each answer assigned a value of 0-3.

There are some statements that are assigned with the same score. Thus, under the heading “mood”, there are two possible answers with the same value of “2” – “2a, I am blue or sad all the time and I can’t snap out of it” and “2b, I am so sad or unhappy that it is very painful.”

After the test is completed, the value of each statement is added and the total score is then compared to a key to determine the severity of the depression. In the original Beck Depression Inventory, the standard cut-offs are as follows:

* 0-9 – a person is not depressed

* 10-18 – mild to moderate depression

* 19-29 – moderate to severe depression

* 30-63 – severe depression

If the subject received higher total scores, this indicates a more severe depressive condition.

Then in 1971, Dr. Beck published the BDI-IA, which was meant to be an update to the original Beck Depression Inventory. This version of the Beck Depression Inventory removed any –a and –b statements in the test in order to make it easier. Another change that was introduced was an additional statement to every item, asking patients to define if they felt any of the following within the past two weeks.

Although the items on the inventory are highly correlated with each other, according to its Cronbach’s alpha coefficient score of 0.85, many researchers pointed out that the questions asked were only able to address six of the nine DSM-III criteria used to diagnose depression.

To address these weak areas, a 1996 revision was made to the existing version of the Beck Depression Inventory. This new inventory also covered the new criteria in the DSM-IV, published in 1994 by the American Psychiatric Association in its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition.