Publications [#271730] of John F. Curry

Journal Articles

1. Cole, DA; Cai, L; Martin, NC; Findling, RL; Youngstrom, EA; Garber, J; Curry, JF; Hyde, JS; Essex, MJ; Compas, BE; Goodyer, IM; Rohde, P; Stark, KD; Slattery, MJ; Forehand, R (2011). Structure and measurement of depression in youths: applying item response theory to clinical data.. Psychol Assess, 23(4), 819-833. [doi]
   (last updated on 2023/06/01)

   Abstract:
   Our goals in this article were to use item response theory (IRT) to assess the relation of depressive symptoms to the underlying dimension of depression and to demonstrate how IRT-based measurement strategies can yield more reliable data about depression severity than conventional symptom counts. Participants were 3,403 children and adolescents from 12 contributing clinical and nonclinical samples; all participants had received the Kiddie Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Aged Children. Results revealed that some symptoms reflected higher levels of depression and were more discriminating than others. Furthermore, use of IRT-based information about symptom severity and discriminability in the measurement of depression severity was shown to reduce measurement error and increase measurement fidelity.