The Psychometric Properties of the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) for Iranian Cancer Patients

Abstract

Objectives: The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) was specifically created to assess<br />depression in cancer patients. However, to date, the CES-D has not been validated in Farsi. Therefore, this study aimed to<br />assess the psychometric properties of the CES-D in Iranian cancer patients. Methods: During a three-month period<br />(October to December, 2015), a total of 380 cancer patients completed a Farsi version of the CES-D. The construct<br />validity of the scale was evaluated by exploratory factor analysis. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha<br />and McDonald Omega. All of the statistical procedure were run by SPSS 22 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Results:<br />The construct validity of the CES-D determined three factors (somatic affect, negative affect, and positive affect),<br />which explained 65.60% of the total variance. The internal consistency was greater than 0.70. Conclusion: Findings<br />revealed that the Farsi version of the CES-D has acceptable validity and reliability, which can be used to measure<br />depression in Iranian cancer patients.