Interrater and observer/self-report correlation of psychopathology in routine clinical practice.
Interrater (attending vs resident) and observer/patient self-report correlations were assessed for 17 and 9 symptom factors, respectively, in a consecutive sample of psychiatric outpatients at the time of intake evaluation in a university based clinic using the Hopkins Psychiatric Rating Scale (HPRS) and the SCL-90R. Highly significant interrater reliability was obtained for most items on the HPRS but observer/self-report correlations were more variable, ranging from good (r = .60 to .75) for depression and phobic anxiety, to poor (r < .40) for obsessive-compulsive, paranoia, and psychoticism symptoms. Results also varied by patient sex. The findings suggest a role for both observer and, for specific symptoms, self-report symptom scales in routine clinical practice.
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, State University of New York at Stony Brook 11790, USA.
T J
TJ
Craig
L
L
Jandorf
J
J
Rubinstein
D000553:Ambulatory Care; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D015588:Observer Variation; D010348:Patient Care Team; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011570:Psychiatry / Q000193:education; D011594:Psychometrics; D011599:Psychopathology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012737:Sex Factors