Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire – Child self-report (SMFQ-C)

Abstract

The Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire – Child self-report (SMFQ-C) is a brief, 13-item psychometric instrument designed to screen for core depressive symptomology in children and adolescents. Developed from the original 33-item Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ), the SMFQ-C is intended for self-administration by individuals aged 6 to 17 years. It specifically assesses the presence and severity of affective and cognitive symptoms of depression experienced over the preceding two weeks. The scale utilizes a 3-point Likert scale format, yielding a total score ranging from 0 to 26. While not a diagnostic tool, the SMFQ is widely used in clinical and epidemiological research for screening, monitoring treatment progress, and evaluating clinical remission.

Keywords

Depression, Screening, Child Self-Report, SMFQ, Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, Affective Symptoms, Cognitive Symptoms, Adolescent, Psychometrics, Clinical Assessment

Authors

Adrian Angold, E. Jane Costello, S. C. Messer, A. Pickles, F. Winder, D. Silver

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ) is to serve as an efficient screening tool for identifying the presence and severity of depressive symptoms in pediatric populations. Its brevity and ease of administration make it highly suitable for large-scale epidemiological studies and routine clinical monitoring.

The scale is highly valuable for tracking clinical progress and measuring remission during or following treatment, as demonstrated by its utility in longitudinal studies (Wood, Kroll, Moore & Harrington, 1995). Although the SMFQ provides a quantitative measure of symptom severity (scores ranging from 0 to 26), clinicians are advised to use their discretion and clinical judgement when interpreting scores, as there are no universally prescribed cut-off points (Angold & Costello, 1987). However, scores exceeding 12 have often been suggested to indicate greater severity, potentially necessitating further clinical evaluation.

Construct

The SMFQ-C measures the core affective and cognitive symptoms associated with major depressive disorder. Its development was historically rooted in the diagnostic criteria set forth by the DSM-III-R and ICD-10 for depressive disorders. The shortened 13-item version focuses heavily on the affective and cognitive items derived from the original 33-item Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ).

The specific symptoms assessed include feelings of misery or unhappiness, frequent crying, and general lack of enjoyment. Additionally, the scale incorporates items related to physical and cognitive manifestations often associated with depression, such as tiredness, restlessness, and difficulties with concentration (Angold & Costello, 1995). The high correlation between the full MFQ and the shortened SMFQ suggests that the 13-item version retains the essential information necessary to assess the construct effectively.

Validity

The SMFQ demonstrates strong evidence of validity across multiple domains, supporting its use as a reliable screening instrument.

The scale exhibits good criterion validity, evidenced by its moderately high correlations with established depression measures, including the depression scales of the Child Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (DISC). Furthermore, the SMFQ shows good discriminate validity, successfully differentiating between depressed and non-depressed populations, as well as distinguishing between psychiatric and paediatric samples.

However, it is crucial to note the limitations regarding its discriminant power for differential diagnosis. The SMFQ is generally unable to distinguish children presenting with depression only from those experiencing comorbid conditions such as anxiety disorders or conduct disorder, highlighting why its application must be restricted to screening rather than definitive diagnosis (Kent, Vostanis, Feehan, 1997).

Reliability

The Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire exhibits high internal consistency and acceptable stability coefficients, confirming its reliability across different administrations.

Internal reliability is strong, indicated by a high Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.85 (Angold & Costello, 1995). When utilizing a suggested cut-off score of 8 or more, the instrument demonstrates a useful balance of diagnostic accuracy, achieving 60% sensitivity and 85% specificity. Furthermore, longitudinal studies have assessed the temporal stability of the measure, finding one-year rank order stability coefficients ranging from 0.28 to 0.48 (Messer, 1995), suggesting moderate stability of symptom reporting over time in this age group.

Factor Analysis

The SMFQ is characterized by a robust unidimensional factor structure. This structure means that all 13 items load onto a single underlying factor, confirming that the scale primarily measures a single construct—depressive symptom severity.

Studies confirm that the 13 items load significantly onto this factor, with item loadings ranging from 0.36 to 0.78 (Angold et al., 1995; Kuo, Vander Stoep & Stewart, 2005). The creation of the SMFQ involved shortening the original 33-item MFQ (developed in 1987) by selecting the strongest affective and cognitive items. The high correlations observed between the full and shortened versions validate that minimal psychometric information was lost during this reduction process, supporting the use of the 13-item version as a reliable proxy for the longer instrument.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire / Screening measure

Format: 13-item questionnaire rated on a 3-point Likert scale.

Language Available: English, Arabic, Spanish, Norwegian.

Population Group: Children and adolescents.

Age Group: 6 to 17 years old.

Population Details: Used in both clinical (psychiatric and paediatric) and epidemiological settings.

Test Methodology: Items are rated based on symptoms experienced over the past two weeks. The scoring scale is: 0 = Not True; 1 = Sometimes True; 2 = True/Often True (although the original source contained a possible typographical error listing the third option as ‘not true = 2’, the resulting range of 0-26 confirms the three-point scoring method). Total scores are calculated by summing item responses, yielding a range of 0 to 26.

Keywords

Psychological Assessment, Depression Screening, Child Mental Health, Scale Development, Unidimensionality, Likert Scale, Clinical Remission, Epidemiology

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not specified in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not specified in source content.

Correspondence Address: Not specified in source content.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ) is freely available to the public and does not require a fee for use. It can be accessed through various online resources, including the website for the Centre for Developmental Epidemiology at Duke University. The development and initial validation of the shortened 13-item scale occurred in 1995.

The full Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ) suite includes six versions: adult self-report, child self-report, and parent report of the child, each available in 13-item and 33-item formats. While child self-reports generally discriminate depression status better than parent reports, the most accurate clinical evaluation often involves combining reports from multiple sources (Angold & Costello, 1995).

Reference’s

• Angold, A., Costello, E.J., Messer, S.C., Pickles, A., Winder, F., & Silver, D. (1995). Development of a short questionnaire for use in epidemiological studies of depression in children and adolescence. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 5, 237- 249.

• Angold, A., Costello, E. J., Pickles, A., & Winder, F. (1987). The development of a questionnaire for use in epidemiological studies of depression in children and adolescents. London: Medical Research Council Child Psychiatry Unit.

• Kent, L., Vostanis, P., & Feehan, C. (1997). Detection of major and minor depression in children and adolescents: Evaluation of the Mood and Feelings Questionnaire. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 38(5), 565- 573.

• Kuo, E.S., Vander Stoep, A., & Stewart, D.G. (2005). Using the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire to detect depression in detained adults. Assessment, 12(4), 374- 383.

• Messer, S.C., Angold, A., Costello, J., Loeber, R., Van Kammen, W., & Stouthamer-Lober, M. (1995). Development of a short questionnaire for use in epidemiological studies of depression in children and adolescence: Factor composition and structure across development. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 5, 251- 262.

• Wood, A., Kroll, L., Moore, A., & Harrington, R. (1995). Properties of the Mood & Feelings Questionnaire in adolescent psychiatric outpatients: A research note. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 36(2), 327-334.

Items of the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire – Child self-report (SMFQ-C)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

• ‘I felt miserable or unhappy’

• ‘I cried a lot’