Using Brief Measures to Identify Depression and Other Mental Disorders: A Challenge for Research and Clinical Practice

Nickolai Titov and Gerhard Andersson

“In more recent decades our understanding of depression and related conditions have been codified into formal diagnostic classification systems. The International Classification of Diseases (World Health Organization, 2020) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manuals (DSM; American Psychiatric Association, 2013) are the most widely used classification systems in the Western world and have been standardised into diagnostic tools and measures (Kessler and Üstün, 2004).” 


“This editorial seeks to remind our field that although brief measures are useful tools, when used inappropriately, they may lead to high false positive rates of cases, unnecessary treatment, and may pathologise normal human distress.”


Read the full article here



Article in press: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.invent.2021.100450

Nickolai Titov and Gerhard Andersson

Nick (pictured above) is the Executive Director of Mindspot and a Professor at Macquarie University, Australia. Gerhard is a Professor at Linköping University and Researcher at Karolinska Institute, Sweden.

Related Articles

Victoria Hornby

CEO, Mental Health Innovations, UK

International Phone and Text Helplines

Victoria is CEO of Mental Health Innovations, the charity behind SHOUT, the UK’s first 24/7 crisis text service. From 2011 to 2017, she was Director of Programmes at The Royal Foundation, building a portfolio of projects including the Invictus Games, Coach Core, United for Wildlife and Heads Together.