Abstract
The Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale Form A (DAS-A), a self-report measure of depression-related attitudes, has been used in numerous depression studies. The DAS-A has a two-factor structure that has been found consistently with college student samples and clinically depressed samples of middle-aged adults, but it has not been validated with older adults. The present study examined the factor structure with a sample of 100 depressed older adults (average age= 68.19; average initial Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression [HRSD] score= 16.72) who participated in a depression treatment study. Results indicated the factor structure established with younger adults was not replicated with older adults. Furthermore, the factor structure with older adults was uncertain: a single factor structure, two-factor structure, and three-factor structure were essentially of equal validity. The uncertainty of the latent structure of the DAS-A suggests that it should be interpreted with caution whenever used with older adults.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 153-160 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Aging and Mental Health |
Volume | 8 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 1 2004 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Phychiatric Mental Health
- Gerontology
- Geriatrics and Gerontology
- Psychiatry and Mental health