Sensitivity of clinically hospitalized adolescents' self-report measures to change over time

Twenty-five psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents were assessed on three separate occasions (approximately 2 weeks apart) using the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (R-CMAS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and Children's Attributional Styles Questionnaire Revised (KASTAN) within 1 week of hospitalization. Attending clinicians also rated each subject concurrently on the Anxiety and Depression factors of the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale for Children (BPRS-C). Results indicated only modest agreement between self-report measures and clinician ratings over time. Clinician ratings on both BPRS-C factors changed significantly over time, while, of the self-report measures, only the R-CMAS evidenced significant change. Results were discussed in terms of the construct of "negative affectivity," method variance in assessment, and clinical implications.