The development and psychometric assessment of an instrument to measure attitudes towards depression and its treatments in patients suffering from non-psychotic depression

ObjectiveTo develop and psychometrically assess an instrument to measure patients' attitudes towards depression, to its treatments, and aspects of professional help in patients suffering from depression.MethodA 27 item Likert type instrument was developed and written based on an evidence from a literature review and in consultation with experts in depression. Psychiatrists (n = 12) participated in a validation process of the instrument before it was administered to outpatients (n = 63) suffering from non-psychotic depression.ResultsInternal consistency reliability for the instrument was 0.79 (Cronbach's alpha) and there was 88% overall agreement between experts about the relevance of the instruments' items to test patients' attitudes to depression and its treatments, providing evidence for content validity. Factor analysis resulted in five cohesive and theoretically meaningful factors: 1) Acceptance of treatment, 2) Perceived stigma and shame, 3) Negative attitude towards antidepressants, 4) Self stigma, and 5) Preference for psychotherapy.ConclusionThe developed instrument is a reliable, valid and empirical measure to assess attitudes towards depression and its treatments. Future research should be designed to replicate and extend the present findings with larger and more heterogeneous samples.