Normative Data for the Swedish Versions of the Beck Anxiety Index and Beck Depression Inventory—Version 2

Abstract

Background

Two of the most extensively utilized questionnaires for assessing symptoms of anxiety and depression are Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck Depression Inventory-second version (BDI-II).

Aim

Given the absence of normative data based on a representative Scandinavian cohort, the primary objective is to provide normative data from a representative Swedish general population sample and explore potential associations with sociodemographic variables.

Methods

Data was collected 2019 from a pre-stratified Swedish adult population sample (n = 2622).

Results

The average mean value showed: a mild level of anxiety (8.7 ± 9.5) and a minimal level of depression (3.4 ± 5.6). Higher BAI and BDI-II scores were observed in women and younger individuals. There was an association between educational attainment and BDI-II scores, where those with a bachelor's degree or higher reported a lower depression score. Results show that BAI and BDI-II deviate from normality but demonstrate excellent internal consistency (McDonald's omega 0.92 and 0.91, respectively). BAI had a poor model fit (RMSEA) 0.11), while BDI-II had a fair model fit (RMSEA 0.08).

Discussion

The present study presents normative data for BAI and BDI-II based on a representative sample from the Swedish general population. The model fit was not ideal, indicating caution, particularly for BAI.