Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS)
Psychology: Mental HealthReliability: alpha 0.936 sample items
About this scale
A 10-item clinician-rated depression severity scale focusing on core depressive symptoms with minimal somatic items. Standard outcome measure in antidepressant trials, often preferred over HAM-D.
Sample item(s)
“Apparent sadness (clinician-rated 0–6)”
“Reported sadness”
“Inner tension”
“Reduced sleep”
“Pessimistic thoughts”
“Suicidal thoughts”
Reliability
Reported internal consistency: alpha 0.93. As a rule of thumb, Cronbach’s α ≥ .70 is considered acceptable, ≥ .80 good, and ≥ .90 excellent for established measures.
Notes
Standard clinician-rated depression scale, FDA-recognized.
Source & citation
Montgomery, S. A., & Åsberg, M. (1979): A new depression scale designed to be sensitive to change. British Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 134, No. 4, pp. 382–389.
Source. Scale details are summarised from the publication cited above. Always consult the original source for the full item set, scoring, and permission to use.
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