The Goldberg Depression Scale is an internationally known scale for screening for depression. This is just a screening tool and is not intended to diagnose depression. If a person rates high on this scale, a professional assessment can accurately diagnose whether or not the person has a clinical depressive disorder.
Depression Scale
Score one point for each “Yes” if the symptom occurs most of the time over the past 2–4 weeks.
- Have you had low energy?
- Have you had loss of interests?
- Have you lost confidence in yourself?
- Have you felt hopeless?
If “Yes” with any question, go on to 5–9:
- Have you had difficulty concentrating?
- Have you lost weight (due to poor appetite)?
- Have you been waking early?
- Have you felt slowed up?
- Have you tended to feel worse in the mornings?
People with a score of two (2) have a 50 percent chance of having a mental health problem. With higher scores the probability rises sharply.
For More Information
For more information on depression, you can contact the Mood Disorders Association of Manitoba at 204-786-0987 or www.mooddisordersmanitoba.ca. If you are concerned about symptoms of depression that you may be experiencing, a good first step is to talk to your doctor. If you do not have a regular doctor, you can try a walk-in clinic or you can call the Family Doctor Finder (204-786-7111) for information on doctors accepting new patients.