Assessment of depression in childhood and adolescence: an evaluation of the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (CES-DC).

Psychometric characteristics of the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (CES-DC) were evaluated with 148 child and adolescent psychiatric inpatients. Test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and concurrent validity were adequate. Principal components analysis identified three distinct factors: behavioral and cognitive components of depression and a happiness dimension. However, subsequent factor scores and CES-DC total scores were unable to discriminate DSM-III diagnoses, including depressive and nondepressive categories. The CES-DC showed poor reliability and validity in the children alone but had good psychometric properties for the adolescents. More validational research is required before standard clinical use can be recommended.