Beck Depression Inventory-II
BDI-IIA 21-item self-report measure of depression severity over the past two weeks, aligned with DSM criteria; each item presents four statements of increasing severity (0-3).
Ready-to-cite methods sentence
Reliability & validation
Subscales
Known limitations
Licensed/proprietary (permission and purchase required from Pearson). A severity index, not a diagnosis; somatic items may inflate scores in medically ill populations.
Original citation
Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., Brown, G. K. (1996). Manual for the Beck Depression Inventory-II. Psychological Corporation.
This instrument is licensed. Obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in your study.
Questions researchers ask
What does the BDI-II measure?
A 21-item self-report measure of depression severity over the past two weeks, aligned with DSM criteria; each item presents four statements of increasing severity (0-3).
How many items does the BDI-II have?
The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) has 21 items across 2 subscales: Cognitive, Somatic-Affective.
Is the BDI-II free to use?
The BDI-II is licensed. You must obtain permission from the copyright holder before using it in a study — Folio does not distribute its item wording without that permission.
Is the BDI-II reliable?
Validation studies report Cronbach's α of 0.92, test–retest reliability of 0.93. See the reliability section for the population studied and full statistics.
Who developed the BDI-II, and how do I cite it?
Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., Brown, G. K. (1996). Manual for the Beck Depression Inventory-II. Psychological Corporation.
Reference only
Folio has verified the citation and methods metadata for this scale, but does not hold confirmed item wording or scoring to import into Surveyor.
Related scales
Library entry verified July 2026. Metadata is provided for reference; item wording is available inside Folio Surveyor, subject to each instrument's licensing.