A validation study of the Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, Danish version

Abstract

Introduction

The Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ) was developed to measure depressive symptoms in children and adolescents. It includes a child self-report part and a parent report on child part. The MFQ has been validated and proven clinical useful in several countries.

Objectives

To validate the MFQ in a population of Danish children and adolescents.

Aims

There is a need of a standardized questionnaire for Danish children and adolescents tapping into affective symptoms. Before routine use the MFQ must have been validated in Denmark. This study examines the validity of MFQ in Danish children and adolescents.

Methods

The study included two samples of probands aged 8–18 years. A population-based sample of school children and their parents, and a clinical sample including two subsamples:

– patients referred for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services with depressive symptoms;

– in-patients at the paediatric department of a University Hospital.

All included probands and their parents filled out the MFQ and the clinical samples in addition answered the depression section of the Beck Youth Inventories, and were interviewed using the depression part of “K-SADS-PL”.

Results

Preliminary results from both samples will be presented at the EPA 2017 in Florence.

Conclusions

Depending on the results of this study, the MFQ might be used as a screening instrument and as a clinical tool to monitor depressive symptoms in Danish children and adolescents.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.