How Do You Know if You're Depressed?

A New Online Test for Depression from Mental Health Researchers

Mar 18, 2009

Feelings of sadness are normal in healthy individuals, but how do you know if you're seriously depressed? Here's an online test for depression from mental health experts.

Everyone feels a little sad, anxious, or fatigued sometimes – and knowing if you’re seriously depressed is easier with this online test for depression.

These mental health researchers have developed the online test for depression to predict whether an individual will struggle with serious depression in the upcoming 12 months.

Why an Online Test for Depression?

“Major depression is now a leading cause of illness and disability world-wide, and reducing its prevalence is one of the greatest public health challenges of the twenty-first century,” says professor Michael King from the Department of Mental Health Sciences at University College in London.

He added, “Depression will rank second to cardiovascular disease as a global cause of disability by 2020. Up to a quarter of people who visit their doctor experience major depression, with relapses frequently occurring for up to ten years.”

King also says, “Depression is a common problem throughout the world, but although we know how to treat it, we know very little about how to prevent its onset. We have ways of predicting the onset of heart disease or stroke, but none for predicting people’s risk of major depression. Our study is one of the first to develop a risk algorithm for [predicting risk of depression].”

The Online Test for Depression

King’s online test for depression contains a risk algorithm that predicts whether you’ll struggle with serious depression in the upcoming 12 months. So, it's not just for when you're wondering if you're depressed - this online test for depression is a tool that may predict how you'll feel in the future.

A team of mental health researchers, led by professors Michael King and Irwin Nazareth of the University College in London, tested 6,000 people who visited their family doctor in six countries in Europe (UK, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Estonia). The accuracy of this online test for depression was also tested in nearly 3,000 people who saw their family doctors in Chile, South America.

Details of this study was published in the December 2008 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

For more information about this online test for depression – or to take the test – go to Predict Depression on the University College of London’s website.

Remember that this online test for depression is no substitute for visiting your family doctor, counselor, or psychologist. If you think you’re depressed, but don’t know for sure, talk to a mental health expert in person.

The copyright of the article How Do You Know if You're Depressed? in Clinical Psychology is owned by Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen. Permission to republish How Do You Know if You're Depressed? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.