Date of Award
2015
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D. in Psychology
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
John Young
Second Advisor
John P. Bentley
Third Advisor
Alan M. Gross
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
To date, only one study has examined the psychometric properties of the 12-item depression, anxiety, and stress scales (DASS). Moreover, all psychometric studies conducted with the DASS-21 have focused narrowly on associations with semi-structured interviews and other relevant self-report measures. In order to address these limitations, I proposed to diversify the ways in which we examine the DASS instrument (for both the 12- and 21-item versions). First, I examined the extent to which the DASS instrument is able to predict responses to behavioral tasks and whether the DASS was able to produce hypothesized convergent and divergent relationships with relevant self-report measures. Second, I examined how well the DASS predicted diagnoses gleaned from semi-structured interviews. Third, I estimated the reliability of the DASS with Raykov's reliability estimates and Cronbach's alpha values. Results across these analyses suggest that the DASS-12 and DASS-21 possess acceptable psychometric properties when measuring general psychological distress. However, both instruments lacked compelling evidence for being able to account for symptoms of anxiety, depression and stress after factoring in general psychological distress. Recommendations such as revising DASS-items, generating new items, or simply using the total score are discussed in the context of a broader taxonomy of anxiety and mood disorders.
Recommended Citation
Chin, Eu Gene, "12-Item Depression, Anxiety, And Stress Scales (Dass-12): Associations With Self-Report Measures, A Semi-Strcutured Interview, And Behavioral Tasks" (2015). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 329.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/329
Concentration/Emphasis
Emphasis: Clinical Psychology