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Screening of depression in adolescents through the Internet

Sensitivity and specificity of two screening questionnaires

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Abstract

The Internet may offer new opportunities for treating depressed adolescents. However, before such treatments are possible, well-validated screening instruments are needed. In the current study, we validate two Internet-based screening instruments for depression among adolescents, the major depression inventory (MDI), and the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D). A total of 1,392 adolescents, recruited through high schools and the Internet, filled in the online questionnaires. Of these, 243 (17%) were interviewed with the MINI diagnostic interview to assess the presence of a mood disorder. Cronbach’s alpha was high for both the CES-D (0.93) and the MDI (0.88), and both correlated highly with each other (0.88; P < .001). The scores on both instruments were significantly increased in all subjects with a mood disorder, whether current or lifetime, except for lifetime minor depression. In the ROC analyses, high areas under the curve were found for the MDI (0.89) and CES-D (0.90). The best cut-off point for the MDI was 19 (sensitivity: 90.48; specificity: 71.53), and for the CES-D it was 22 (sensitivity: 90.48; specificity: 74.31). We conclude that the MDI and CES-D are reliable and valid instruments that can be used for this screening.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Clinical Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Van der Boechorststraat 1, Amsterdam, 1081, BT, The Netherlands

    Pim Cuijpers, Petra Boluijt & Annemieke van Straten

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  1. Pim Cuijpers
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  2. Petra Boluijt
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  3. Annemieke van Straten
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Correspondence to Pim Cuijpers.

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Cuijpers, P., Boluijt, P. & van Straten, A. Screening of depression in adolescents through the Internet. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 17, 32–38 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-007-0631-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-007-0631-2

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