title: Specificity of symptoms in RDC endogenous depression.
abstract: The Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC) define endogenous depression by the presence of a particular subset of depressive symptoms. This typological approach to classification implicitly assumes that endogenous and non-endogenous patients differ only or primarily in this subset of symptoms, rather than simply in severity of all depressive symptoms. We tested this assumption in a sample of 80 patients with a current episode of major depressive disorder. Whereas RDC endogenous patients (n = 53) had significantly higher levels of most criterial symptoms than did non-endogenous patients (n = 27), they differed on almost no non-endogenous symptoms. These findings support the concept of a specific endogenous symptom cluster.
authors.affiliation: Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Robins
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Block
authors.forename: E D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Peselow
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011581:Psychological Tests; D011594:Psychometrics