Objectives: To examine the psychometric properties and test the theoretical quality of the German version of the Centre for Epidemiological Studies depression scale for children (CES-DC), a 20-item screening instrument measuring the frequency of parent- and self-reported depressive symptoms in children and adolescents.
Methods: Using a population-based, representative sample of n=2,863 7 to 17-year-old German children and adolescents, factorial validity were determined by means of linear structural equation modelling. Cross-sectional coefficients of reliability, inter-rater agreement as well as descriptive statistics of the scales were calculated.
Results: In a population-based German sample, the four-factor version of the CES-DC following Radloff (Appl Psychol Meas 1:385-401, 1977) is considered to have good factorial validity and stability across age and informant versions. The main problems of the questionnaire are the high item difficulties, strong floor effects of the scales and low cross-sectional reliability, which are acceptable only for screening purposes. The low inter-rater agreement indicates that parental assessment can replace self-assessment only to a limited degree.
Conclusion: The strengths and weaknesses of the CES-DC are discussed taking previous data and comparable tests into consideration. Particular advantages are the existence of the parent-report form and the adult version, as well as its multifactorial structure. Parental assessment should be supplemented by self-report data whenever possible.