title: Comparison of factor structure models for the Beck Depression Inventory--II.
abstract: Factor analyses of the Beck Depression Inventory--II (A. T. Beck, R. A. Steer, & G. K. Brown, 1996) have frequently produced 2 different 2-factor oblique structures. The author used confirmatory factor analyses to compare these structures with a general-factor model with 2 orthogonal group factors. The general-factor model fit as well as or better than the 2-factor models when applied to item data from previous studies (3 clinical and 2 college samples). Communalities associated with the General Depression factor ranged from 71% to 82%. Cognitive and Somatic group factors were indicative of intropunitiveness and fatigue. It was concluded that the general-factor model gives an acceptable empirical explanation of item covariance structure and offers a conceptual interpretation that is well suited to clinical practice and research.
authors.affiliation: Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Tuscaloosa, AL 35404, USA. wardlc@gmail.com
authors.forename: L Charles
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Ward
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires