ArticleHeliyon2021
Comparison of DASS-21, PHQ-8, and GAD-7 in a virtual behavioral health care setting.
Article in Heliyon, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 73 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effectiveness of second-generation mindfulness interventions on anxiety and depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical psychology review · 2026Pooled it
- Magnitude of the Digital Placebo Effect and Its Moderators on Generalized Anxiety Symptoms: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Pooled it
- Efficacy of stand-alone digital mental health applications for anxiety and depression: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal of psychiatric research · 2023Pooled it
- The Association of Social Support and Loneliness with Symptoms of Depression, Anxiety, and Posttraumatic Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Meta-Analysis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Pooled it
- Using a Virtual Reality CAVE-Based Mindfulness Intervention to Promote Mental Well-Being in Adolescents With Anxiety Symptoms: Pre-Post Mixed Methods Pilot Study.JMIR formative research · 2026Article
- Interrelationship between Daytime Functional Outcomes and Psychological Distress in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Cross-Sectional Study.Pulmonary therapy · 2026Article
- Curiosity in a Novel Virtual Reality Scenario and Its Association With Symptoms of Depression: Observational Pilot Investigation.JMIR formative research · 2026Observational
- Work-life realities of doctors in Georgia and their impact on mental health and work-related well-being: A cross-sectional study.PloS one · 2026Article
- Prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress disorder among women affected by infertility in Ethiopia.Discover mental health · 2025Article
- Psychological well-being of medical and dental students in Saudi Arabia post worldwide pandemic: a cross sectional study.BMC medical education · 2025Article
- Personality traits or emotional dysregulation: a multiple mediation analyses of adolescent depression.Borderline personality disorder and emotion dysregulation · 2025Article
- Psychological Health in the Management of Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis: An Intricate Relationship.Rheumatology and therapy · 2025Review
- Responsiveness and minimal important differences of common disability measures in people with depression and anxiety disorders.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences · 2025Article
- Psychological distress in women with primary and secondary infertility: a comparative analysis of depression, anxiety, and stress.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Investigating the psychophysiological effects of NaiKan Therapy: salivary oxytocin and cortisol release.Frontiers in integrative neuroscience · 2025Article
- Psychological capital and mental health problems among the unemployed in the post-COVID-19 era: Self- esteem as a moderator.PloS one · 2025Article
- Psychological impacts of the Gaza war on Palestinian young adults: a cross-sectional study of depression, anxiety, stress, and PTSD symptoms.BMC psychology · 2024Article
- Bearing the burden: Podoconiosis and mental health-A three-way comparative cross-sectional study in Rwanda.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Article
- Psychometric properties of the GAD-7 (General Anxiety Disorder-7): a cross-sectional study of the Peruvian general population.BMC psychology · 2024Article
- Assessing mental health among students in the UAE: A cross-sectional study utilizing the DASS-21 scale.Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundValidated depression and anxiety symptom screeners are commonly used in clinical settings. How results from different brief depression and anxiety symptom assessment tools compare to each other is not well established, especially in real world healthcare settings. This study aimed to compare the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 Depression scale (DASS-Depression) and Anxiety (DASS-Anxiety) scale to the Patient Health Questionnaire 8 (PHQ-8) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7) respectively, in a real-world virtual behavioral healthcare setting.
methodsThis was a retrospective comparison study of clinical data from a population of adults who completed a consultation via telephone or secure video with a licensed therapist as part of a standardized, evidence-based, virtual behavioral therapy program for individuals with comorbid medical and behavioral health conditions. The joint distributions and correlations between scores yielded by each depression and anxiety scale were assessed using descriptive and Spearman correlation statistics.
resultsThe DASS-Depression and PHQ-8 were highly correlated (r = .71; p=<.001); the DASS-Anxiety and GAD-7 correlation was also high (r = .61; p=<.001). The PHQ-8 categorized more individuals as having above-threshold depression scores versus the DASS-Depression (71.5% vs. 43.5%; p < .001). The GAD-7 categorized more individuals as having above-threshold anxiety scores versus the DASS-Anxiety (59.0% vs. 45.0%; p < .001). LIMITATIONS: This study compared results yielded by validated screeners, precluding conclusions related to the validity of screener results.
conclusionsThe DASS-Depression and PHQ-8 and the DASS-Anxiety and GAD-7 similarly ranked symptom severity. The PHQ-8 and GAD-7 were more likely than the DASS-21 Depression or Anxiety scales to classify individuals as having above-threshold symptom severity.
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