Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHow the Children’s Depression Inventory WorksHow Is the Children’s Depression Inventory Administered?How Reliable Is the Children’s Depression Inventory?InterpretationLimitations of the Children’s Depression InventoryWhat Happens Next?

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

How the Children’s Depression Inventory Works

How Is the Children’s Depression Inventory Administered?

How Reliable Is the Children’s Depression Inventory?

Interpretation

Limitations of the Children’s Depression Inventory

What Happens Next?

Close

If your child has been diagnosed with depression or will be evaluated for depression, you may have heard of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI). The CDI is a tool that mental health professionals use to measure the cognitive, affective, and behavioral signs of depression in children and adolescents between the ages of 7 and 17.

The Children’s Depression Inventory is used to scale the severity ofdepressive symptoms in children. It also differentiates between major depressive disorder and persistent depressive disorder (formerly known asdysthymic disorder) in children. It can help practitioners distinguish between these disorders and other psychiatric conditions.

At a GlanceThe Children’s Depression Inventory is a child depression test that kids can take to screen for symptoms of childhood depression. It has become one of the most widely used depression assessments because it is fast and easy to administer.If your child gets a positive score on the CDI, they’ll be referred to a doctor or mental health professional for further evaluation. Early intervention is essential, so consider getting your child screened if they are showing signs of depression.

At a Glance

The Children’s Depression Inventory is a child depression test that kids can take to screen for symptoms of childhood depression. It has become one of the most widely used depression assessments because it is fast and easy to administer.If your child gets a positive score on the CDI, they’ll be referred to a doctor or mental health professional for further evaluation. Early intervention is essential, so consider getting your child screened if they are showing signs of depression.

The Children’s Depression Inventory is a child depression test that kids can take to screen for symptoms of childhood depression. It has become one of the most widely used depression assessments because it is fast and easy to administer.

If your child gets a positive score on the CDI, they’ll be referred to a doctor or mental health professional for further evaluation. Early intervention is essential, so consider getting your child screened if they are showing signs of depression.

While depression is often considered an adult disorder, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that 4.4% of kids between the ages of 3 and 17 have been diagnosed with depression.

The Children’s Depression Inventory has two forms: The original 27-item version and the 10-item short-form version, which takes between 5 and 15 minutes for the child to complete.

The CDI is designed to detect symptoms of depression and to distinguish between depression and other psychiatric disorders. It can also be used as an instrument to monitor changes in depression symptoms over time.

CDI Short Form vs. Long FormThe short form of the test is generally used as ascreening tool, while the long-form is used more often in the diagnosis of depression in children.

CDI Short Form vs. Long Form

The short form of the test is generally used as ascreening tool, while the long-form is used more often in the diagnosis of depression in children.

What You Should Know About Childhood Depression

Each item in the CDI has three statements, and the child is asked to select the one answer that best describes their feelings over the past two weeks. There are five subscales within the assessment that measure different components of depression:

The Children’s Depression Inventory is popular in part because it is easy to administer and score. A child with age-appropriate reading abilities can complete the scale relatively quickly.

The CDI has excellent psychometric properties, which means that it measures depression in children accurately and reliably when used properly.Some research indicates, however, that the test is not appropriate for children who have reading difficulties.

The CDI was tested on a large group representing the population of children in the United States.

Research has also shown that the Children’s Depression Inventory (both the full version and short version) is a valid instrument for screening for depression in pediatric settings.It has also been validated for use with children who have physical disabilities.

However, doctors working in pediatric care are advised to follow up with diagnostic assessments to rule out potential false positives.

Interpreting the Children’s Depression Inventory

Only a professional trained on the properties of the CDI can accurately interpret the results. A raw score on the test is essentially meaningless without a professional’s interpretation, so parents should always discuss the meaning of the results with the professional who evaluated the child.

While the CDI is good at detecting the presence of depressive symptoms, it is not the best at determining their severity.

You should discuss follow-up assessments with your child’s doctor to determine the best course oftreatment for your child. Milder symptoms may respond well to support and self-care, while more moderate to severe symptoms may require other treatments such asmedicationsor psychotherapy.

Like other self-report assessments used in children, the Children’s Depression Inventory is vulnerable to certain limitations. For example, because children don’t have the same sophistication as adults when it comes to understanding and reporting their emotions, their responses may not reflect their true emotional state.

In addition, children may be more likely than adults to attempt to give what they believe to be the desired answers rather than answers that represent their true feelings.

Some researchers have also observed that children who do not have age-appropriate reading skills may receive an inaccurate diagnosis on the basis of their CDI score.

While the inventory has five subscales, some studies have failed to support the five-factor structure. Instead, some researchers indicate that two-, three-, or four-factor models are a better fit.

The use of the CDI for children outside of the U.S. may be limited due to cultural-specific interpretations. One study found that demographic and socio-cultural factors influenced the interpretation of depressive symptoms. This suggests that more research is needed to ensure the CDI is valid in cultures outside the U.S.

The Children’s Depression Inventory is a quick and painless depression assessment for your child. While any type of test is sure to make a child nervous, you can assure your child that there are no right or wrong answers.

Depressive symptoms tend to fluctuate in both children and adults. Therefore, the test’s author recommends retesting any child who receives a positive score on the CDI two to four weeks after the initial test.

If you are concerned about depression in your child, it is important to consult with your child’s pediatrician or other mental health professional. It is important that childhood depression is treated quickly.

Childhood depression can have serious consequences, particularly when it is left untreated. It can affect a child’s personal development, well-being, health, and academic achievement. Such effects can also carry over into adulthood.

Detecting childhood depression early and treating it effectively can help kids feel better and protect their well-being as they develop.

How to Tell If Your Child Shows Symptoms of Depression

6 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Anxiety and depression in children: Get the facts.Jelínek M, Květon P, Burešová I, Klimusová H.Measuring depression in adolescence: Evaluation of a hierarchical factor model of the Children’s Depression Inventory and measurement invariance across boys and girls.PLoS One. 2021;16(4):e0249943. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0249943Anant N, Kaur D, Nadarajan R, et al.Validating the Children’s Depression Inventory-2: Results from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) study.PLoS One. 2023;18(5):e0286197. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0286197Allgaier AK, Fruhe B, Pietsch K, Saravo B, Baethmann M, Shulte-Korne G.Is the children’s depression inventory short version a valid screening tool in pediatric care? A comparison to its full-length.Journal of Psychosomatic Research.2012;73(5):369-374. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2012.08.016de la Vega R, Racine M, Sánchez-Rodríguez E, et al.Psychometric properties of the short form of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI-S) in young people with physical disabilities.J Psychosom Res. 2016;90:57-61. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2016.09.007Stumper A, Olino TM, Abramson LY, Alloy LB.A factor analysis and test of longitudinal measurement invariance of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) across adolescence.J Psychopathol Behav Assess. 2019;41(4):692-698. doi:10.1007/s10862-019-09746-xAdditional ReadingFrick PJ, Barry CT, Kamphaus RW. Clinical Assessment of Child and Adolescent Personality and Behavior. New York: Springer; 2009.Kovacs M.Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI).New York: Multi-health Systems, Inc.; 1992.

6 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Anxiety and depression in children: Get the facts.Jelínek M, Květon P, Burešová I, Klimusová H.Measuring depression in adolescence: Evaluation of a hierarchical factor model of the Children’s Depression Inventory and measurement invariance across boys and girls.PLoS One. 2021;16(4):e0249943. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0249943Anant N, Kaur D, Nadarajan R, et al.Validating the Children’s Depression Inventory-2: Results from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) study.PLoS One. 2023;18(5):e0286197. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0286197Allgaier AK, Fruhe B, Pietsch K, Saravo B, Baethmann M, Shulte-Korne G.Is the children’s depression inventory short version a valid screening tool in pediatric care? A comparison to its full-length.Journal of Psychosomatic Research.2012;73(5):369-374. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2012.08.016de la Vega R, Racine M, Sánchez-Rodríguez E, et al.Psychometric properties of the short form of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI-S) in young people with physical disabilities.J Psychosom Res. 2016;90:57-61. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2016.09.007Stumper A, Olino TM, Abramson LY, Alloy LB.A factor analysis and test of longitudinal measurement invariance of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) across adolescence.J Psychopathol Behav Assess. 2019;41(4):692-698. doi:10.1007/s10862-019-09746-xAdditional ReadingFrick PJ, Barry CT, Kamphaus RW. Clinical Assessment of Child and Adolescent Personality and Behavior. New York: Springer; 2009.Kovacs M.Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI).New York: Multi-health Systems, Inc.; 1992.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Anxiety and depression in children: Get the facts.Jelínek M, Květon P, Burešová I, Klimusová H.Measuring depression in adolescence: Evaluation of a hierarchical factor model of the Children’s Depression Inventory and measurement invariance across boys and girls.PLoS One. 2021;16(4):e0249943. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0249943Anant N, Kaur D, Nadarajan R, et al.Validating the Children’s Depression Inventory-2: Results from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) study.PLoS One. 2023;18(5):e0286197. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0286197Allgaier AK, Fruhe B, Pietsch K, Saravo B, Baethmann M, Shulte-Korne G.Is the children’s depression inventory short version a valid screening tool in pediatric care? A comparison to its full-length.Journal of Psychosomatic Research.2012;73(5):369-374. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2012.08.016de la Vega R, Racine M, Sánchez-Rodríguez E, et al.Psychometric properties of the short form of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI-S) in young people with physical disabilities.J Psychosom Res. 2016;90:57-61. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2016.09.007Stumper A, Olino TM, Abramson LY, Alloy LB.A factor analysis and test of longitudinal measurement invariance of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) across adolescence.J Psychopathol Behav Assess. 2019;41(4):692-698. doi:10.1007/s10862-019-09746-x

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Anxiety and depression in children: Get the facts.

Jelínek M, Květon P, Burešová I, Klimusová H.Measuring depression in adolescence: Evaluation of a hierarchical factor model of the Children’s Depression Inventory and measurement invariance across boys and girls.PLoS One. 2021;16(4):e0249943. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0249943

Anant N, Kaur D, Nadarajan R, et al.Validating the Children’s Depression Inventory-2: Results from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) study.PLoS One. 2023;18(5):e0286197. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0286197

Allgaier AK, Fruhe B, Pietsch K, Saravo B, Baethmann M, Shulte-Korne G.Is the children’s depression inventory short version a valid screening tool in pediatric care? A comparison to its full-length.Journal of Psychosomatic Research.2012;73(5):369-374. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2012.08.016

de la Vega R, Racine M, Sánchez-Rodríguez E, et al.Psychometric properties of the short form of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI-S) in young people with physical disabilities.J Psychosom Res. 2016;90:57-61. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2016.09.007

Stumper A, Olino TM, Abramson LY, Alloy LB.A factor analysis and test of longitudinal measurement invariance of the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) across adolescence.J Psychopathol Behav Assess. 2019;41(4):692-698. doi:10.1007/s10862-019-09746-x

Frick PJ, Barry CT, Kamphaus RW. Clinical Assessment of Child and Adolescent Personality and Behavior. New York: Springer; 2009.Kovacs M.Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI).New York: Multi-health Systems, Inc.; 1992.

Frick PJ, Barry CT, Kamphaus RW. Clinical Assessment of Child and Adolescent Personality and Behavior. New York: Springer; 2009.

Kovacs M.Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI).New York: Multi-health Systems, Inc.; 1992.

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