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Table 2 DASS-21 Item test scale reliability

From: Reliability and validity of depression anxiety stress scale (DASS)-21 in screening for common mental disorders among postpartum women in Malawi

Item question

Obs

Sign

Item-test correlation

Item-rest correlation

Average inter-item correlation

Alpha

DASS-Depression subscale

  I found it difficult to work up the initiative to do things

115

 + 

0.5908

0.3907

0.2151

0.6219

  I couldn’t seem to experience any positive feeling at all

115

 + 

0.4552

0.2263

0.2515

0.6685

  I felt that I had nothing to look forward to

115

 + 

0.6124

0.4183

0.2093

0.6137

  I felt down-hearted and blue

115

 + 

0.5742

0.3697

0.2196

0.6280

  I was unable to become enthusiastic about anything

115

 + 

0.4266

0.1934

0.2592

0.6774

  I felt I wasn’t worth much as a person

115

 + 

0.7136

0.5532

0.1822

0.5720

  I felt that life was meaningless

115

 + 

0.6536

0.4720

0.1983

0.5974

  Test Scale Reliability (Cronbach’s alpha)

    

0.2193

0.6629

DASS-Anxiety subscale

  I was aware of dryness of my mouth

115

 + 

0.4242

0.1068

0.0587

0.2722

  I experienced breathing difficulty

115

 + 

0.4748

0.1657

0.0484

0.2336

  I experienced trembling (e.g. in the hands)

115

-

0.3392

0.0130

0.0760

0.3305

  I was worried about situations in which I might panic and make a fool of myself

115

 + 

0.4485

0.1347

0.0537

0.2541

  I felt I was close to panic

115

-

0.4349

0.1190

0.0565

0.2643

  I was aware of the action of my heart in the absence of physical exertion

115

 + 

0.5410

0.2467

0.0349

0.1781

  I felt scared without any good reason

115

-

0.3961

0.0751

0.0644

0.2923

  Test Scale Reliability (Cronbach’s alpha)

    

0.0561

0.2937

DASS-Stress subscale

  I found it hard to wind down

115

 + 

0.6744

0.4705

0.0963

0.3899

  I tended to over-react to situations

115

 + 

0.2857

0.0052

0.1886

0.5824

  I felt that I was using a lot of nervous energy

115

 + 

0.3669

0.0923

0.1693

0.5501

  I found myself getting agitated

115

 + 

0.6929

0.4963

0.0919

0.3777

  I found it difficult to relax

115

 + 

0.5571

0.3158

0.1241

0.4595

  I was intolerant of anything that kept me from getting on with what I was doing

115

 + 

0.3083

0.0291

0.1832

0.5737

  I felt that I was rather touchy

115

 + 

0.6929

0.4963

0.0919

0.3777

  Test Scale Reliability (Cronbach’s alpha)

    

0.1355

0.5233

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BMC Psychiatry

ISSN: 1471-244X

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