Diagnostic efficiency of the Depression Adjective Check Lists

The diagnostic efficiency of the trait version of the Depression Adjective Check Lists (DACL) was studied in a two-phase investigation that involved two psychiatric patient samples (N = 308 and N = 67). Cutting scores developed on the first sample were cross-validated successfully on the second sample. In addition, the DACL compared favorably in diagnostic efficiency with the Beck Depression Inventory, the MMPI-D scale, and a Self-rating Depression scale.