Criterion validity, severity cut scores, and test-retest reliability of the Beck Depression Inventory-II in a university counseling center sample

The criterion validity of the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II; A. T. Beck, R. A. Steer, & G. K. Brown, 1996) was investigated by pairing blind BDI-II administrations with the major depressive episode portion of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders (SCID-I; M. B. First, R. L. Spitzer, M. Gibbon, & J. B. W. Williams, 1997) in a sample of 137 students receiving treatment at a university counseling center. Student BDI-II scores correlated strongly (r = .83) with their number of SCID-I depressed mood symptoms. A BDI-II cut score of 16 yielded a sensitivity rate of 84% and a false-positive rate of 18% in identifying depressed mood. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were used to produce cut scores for determining severity of depressed mood. In a second study, a sample of 46 student clients were administered the BDI-II twice, yielding test-retest reliability of .96.