Does a standardized verbal instruction manual improve the inter-rater reliability of the Chinese Geriatric Depression Scale-short form compared to non-standardized administration?
Standardizing the verbal administration of the GDS-SF improves its inter-rater reliability for screening depression in the elderly.
The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) is a common screening tool for elderly depression in Hong Kong. This study aimed at (1) developing a standardized manual for the verbal administration and scoring of the GDS-SF, and (2) comparing the inter-rater reliability between the standardized and non-standardized verbal administration of GDS-SF. Two studies were reported. In Study 1, the process of developing the manual was described. In Study 2, we compared the inter-rater reliabilities of GDS-SF scores using the standardized verbal instructions and the traditional non-standardized administration. Results of Study 2 indicated that the standardized procedure in verbal administration and scoring improved the inter-rater reliabilities of GDS-SF.
Wong et al. (Mon,) studied this question.
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