DASS-21
Summary and structure
The DASS-21 (Depression Anxiety Stress Scales, short form) was developed by Sydney and Peter Lovibond at the University of New South Wales. It is the short version of the 42-item DASS and measures the negative emotional states of depression, anxiety and stress (tension) with seven items each.
Each statement is rated for how much it applied to the respondent over the past week, from “did not apply to me at all” (0) to “applied to me very much, or most of the time” (3). The three scale scores are summed and multiplied by two so they can be compared with the full DASS-42.
Severity ranges (scale score × 2):
Depression: 0–9 normal, 10–13 mild, 14–20 moderate, 21–27 severe, 28+ extremely severe
Anxiety: 0–7 normal, 8–9 mild, 10–14 moderate, 15–19 severe, 20+ extremely severe
Stress: 0–14 normal, 15–18 mild, 19–25 moderate, 26–33 severe, 34+ extremely severe
The DASS treats these states as dimensions rather than categories. The severity labels describe how far a score lies from the population average, not a diagnosis.
Key Data
Age group: Adults and adolescents from about 14 years
Completion time: about 3–5 minutes
Languages in SwissDTx: English, German, French
Intended Use
The DASS-21 is used in psychotherapy, psychiatry, pain medicine, occupational health and research to profile and monitor depression, anxiety and stress side by side. Separating stress from anxiety and depression helps to target interventions.
Because the three scales can be repeated at regular intervals, the DASS-21 shows how each dimension changes during treatment, which supports decisions in blended care.
Information for Practitioners
The DASS-21 is not a diagnostic instrument. In line with the authors’ conditions, results are intended for the treating professional and should be discussed with the person rather than shown as an automatic interpretation.
In SwissDTx, the three scale scores and severity ranges are calculated automatically and appear only in the Care Cockpit. The person filling in the questionnaire does not see a score. Every completion ends with a support card that lists emergency numbers.
Authors
Sydney H. Lovibond
Peter F. Lovibond
Scientific References
Lovibond S.H., & Lovibond P.F. (1995). Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (2nd ed.). Sydney: Psychology Foundation of Australia.
Henry J.D., & Crawford J.R. (2005). The short-form version of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21): Construct validity and normative data in a large non-clinical sample. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 44(2), 227–239. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466505X29657
Nilges P., & Essau C. (2015). Die Depressions-Angst-Stress-Skalen: Der DASS – ein Screeningverfahren nicht nur für Schmerzpatienten. Der Schmerz, 29(6), 649–657. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00482-015-0019-z
Licence
The DASS is in the public domain (Psychology Foundation of Australia, UNSW Sydney). It may be used in closed clinical and research settings in which results go to the professional; computed scores are not shown to the respondent and the scales themselves may not be sold. It is therefore not offered in public self-tests.