About our mental health tests

MHA Screening is a collection of free, confidential, and scientifically validated mental health screening tools. The resources on this page help explain how each screening tool (test) was developed, which populations it has been validated for, and under which conditions it may be reproduced (if any).

Click on the name of a test to learn more, or simply scroll down the page.

For information about mental health testing in general:

Addiction Test: CAGE-AID

ADHD Test: Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) v1.1

The ASRS v1.1 has been validated for adults as well as adolescents ages 13 and up. We use v1.1, rather than the DSM-5 version, because v1.1 has been evaluated more rigorously for reliability and validity, especially with adolescent populations.

  • Kessler, R. C. et al. (2005). The World Health Organization Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS): a short screening scale for use in the general population. Psychological medicine, 35(2), 245–256. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0033291704002892
  • Adler, L. A., & Newcorn, J. H. (2011). Administering and evaluating the results of the adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) in adolescents. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 72(6), e20. https://doi.org/10.4088/JCP.10081tx2c
  • Adler, L.A. et al. (2012). Preliminary Examination of the Reliability and Concurrent Validity of the Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Self-Report Scale v1.1 Symptom Checklist to Rate Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Adolescents. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology 22(3), pp. 238-244. http://doi.org/10.1089/cap.2011.0062
  • Green, J.G., et al. (2019). Evidence for the reliability and preliminary validity of the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale v1.1 (ASRS v1.1) Screener in an adolescent community sample. Int J Methods Psychiatr Res. 28(1), p. 1751. https://doi.org/10.1002/mpr.1751

Anxiety Test: Generalized Anxiety Disorder -7

Bipolar Test: Mood Disorder Questionnaire

  • Hirschfeld, Robert M.A., M.D., Janet B.W. Williams, D.S.W., Robert L. Spitzer, M.D., Joseph R. Calabrese, M.D., Laurie Flynn, Paul E. Keck, Jr., M.D., Lydia Lewis, Susan L. McElroy, M.D., Robert M. Post, M.D., Daniel J. Rapport, M.D., James M. Russell, M.D., Gary S. Sachs, M.D., John Zajecka, M.D., “Development and Validation of a Screening Instrument for Bipolar Spectrum Disorder: The Mood Disorder Questionnaire.” American Journal of Psychiatry 157:11 (November 2000) 1873-1875.
    http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/abs/10.1176/appi.ajp.157.11.1873

Depression Test: Patient Health Questionnaire -9

Postpartum Depression Test (New and Expecting Parents): Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale

  • Cox, J.L., Holden, J.M., and Sagovsky, R. 1987. Detection of postnatal depression: Development of the 10-item Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. British Journal of Psychiatry 150:782-786.
  • K. L. Wisner, B. L. Parry, C. M. Piontek, Postpartum Depression N Engl J Med vol. 347, No 3, July 18, 2002, 194-199

Eating Disorder Test: Stanford-Washington University Eating Disorder Screen (SWED)

  • The Stanford-Washington University Eating Disorder Screen (SWED) is developed by Drs. C. Barr Taylor, Katherine Balantekin, Ellen Fitzsimmons-Craft, Andrea Kass, Mickey Trockel, and Denise Wilfley and was made possible by grant funding from the National Institute of Mental Health (R01 MH081125 and R01 MH100455). Validation research in progress.

Parent Test: Your Child’s Mental Health: Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC) Parent 17

Psychosis Test: Prodromal Questionnaire Brief (PQ-B)

PTSD Test: Primary Care – PTSD

Youth Mental Health Test: Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC – 35)