Validation of the japanese version of the center for epidemiologic studies depression scale—revised: A preliminary analysis

• Main Authors: Hara, A. (Author), Kambayashi, Y. (Author), Miyagi, S. (Author), Nakamura, H. (Author), Nguyen, T.T.T (Author), Pham, K.O (Author), Shimizu, Y. (Author), Suzuki, K. (Author), Takakura, Y. (Author), Tsuboi, H. (Author), Tsujiguchi, H. (Author), Yoshida, N. (Author)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021
• Subjects: CES-D; CESD-R; Depressive symptoms; Epidemiological study; Japanese version
• Online Access: View Fulltext in Publisher

 To make the Japanese version of the CESD-R—a revised version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies depression scale (CES-D)—in the assessment of depressive symptoms in a general population. The English version of CESD-R was translated into Japanese, and back-translated into English by three native speakers of Japanese and English; then, we selected the version most completely consistent with the original items. The CESD-R was applied to 398 community-dwelling people (191 men: 48.0%, and 207 women: 52.0%) who were over 40 years old. The Japanese version of the CES-D was also carried out in the same population. Factor analysis was performed. Additionally, the correlations between the CESD-R and CES-D results were identified. The CESD-R scores showed a significantly positive correlation with CES-D scores (r = 0.74, p < 0.0005). Analysis of the CESD-R yielded a Cronbach’s alpha result of 0.90. Factor analysis revealed one principal factor in the CESD-R, whereas the original CES-D had two factors because of reversed items. The Japanese version of the CESD-R appears to have the reliability to be applicable for assessing depressive symptoms in population-based samples. However, because the Japanese expressions for some items might be unusual, our study population was also limited; further studies on other populations and on incorporating improved Japanese terminology will be needed. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.