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Norms for the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) in a Large Dutch Community Sample

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Abstract

The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) is a widely used instrument that provides information about the presence and severity of depressive symptoms. Although the BDI-II is a psychometrically sound instrument, relatively little is known about norm scores. This study aimed to develop reliable norms for the BDI-II in a Dutch community sample. Gender, age, and education were hypothesized to predict BDI-II scores. A total of 7,500 respondents from a community sample in The Netherlands completed the BDI-II. It was investigated by means of multiple regression analysis whether distinct norms for genders, education levels, and age group are appropriate. BDI-II scores depended on gender and education level, but not on age. BDI-II norms were computed based on the final regression model. These BDI-II norms can be used for diagnostic purposes, clinical decision making, or the evaluation of treatment effects.

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Notes

  1. As an ancillary analysis, we determined the BDI-II norm scores for a model with no predictors to allow for a comparison of an individual BDI-II score with the total sample. Table 2 presents the BDI-II norm scores for that model.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to express our gratitude to Annie Hendriks, Greet Kellens, and Sylvia Gerhards, who assisted with data collection, and to Rosanne Janssen, who developed the infrastructure for online data collection. Municipalities Eijsden, Meerssen, Sittard-Geleen, Valkenburg, and Maastricht sponsored the study. Competing interests: the authors have no competing interests.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Jeffrey Roelofs, L. Esther de Graaf, Arnoud Arntz & Marcus J. H. Huibers

  2. Department of Methodology and Statistics, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Gerard van Breukelen

  3. Department of Medical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

    L. Esther de Graaf

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Aaron T. Beck

  5. Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences, Wassenaar, The Netherlands

    Arnoud Arntz

  6. Department of Clinical Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Marcus J. H. Huibers

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  1. Jeffrey Roelofs
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  2. Gerard van Breukelen
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  3. L. Esther de Graaf
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  4. Aaron T. Beck
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  5. Arnoud Arntz
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  6. Marcus J. H. Huibers
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Correspondence to Jeffrey Roelofs.

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Roelofs, J., van Breukelen, G., de Graaf, L.E. et al. Norms for the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) in a Large Dutch Community Sample. J Psychopathol Behav Assess 35, 93–98 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-012-9309-2

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