An adaptation of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale for use in non-psychiatric Spanish populations

To adapt the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale for use in non-psychiatric Spanish populations, a Spanish translation of the scale was interviewer-administered to 554 subjects aged 18–34 years (65.9% women) and the ratings so obtained were compared with the SCID-CV-based diagnoses of expert clinicians. The internal consistency of the scale was satisfactory (Cronbach's α = 0.89). Four factors identified by exploratory factor analysis (Depressive/Somatic, Positive Affect, Retarded Activity and Interpersonal Relations) accounted for 55.9% of the variance. A score of 26 was identified as a suitable cut-off for screening purposes, affording a sensitivity of 0.906 and a specificity of 0.918.