Process / pipelinePopulation screening and epidemiology

Kessler Psychological Distress Scale-10 (K10)

The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale-10 (K10) is a 10-item self-report measure of non-specific psychological distress and mental health problems. Developed by Kessler and colleagues in 2002, the K10 was designed as an ultra-brief screening instrument for population surveys and epidemiological research. A shorter 6-item version (K6) is also widely used for rapid case identification.

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Sources

  1. Kessler, R. C., Andrews, G., Colpe, L. Y., Hiripi, E., Mroczek, D. K., Normand, S. L., ... & Zaslavsky, A. M. (2002). Short screening scales to monitor population prevalences and trends in non-specific psychological distress. Psychological Medicine, 32(6), 959-976. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291702006074
  2. Furukawa, T. A., Kessler, R. C., Slade, T., & Andrews, G. (2003). The performance of the K6 and K10 screening scales for psychological distress in the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Well-Being. Psychological Medicine, 33(2), 357-362. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291702006700

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Referenced by

ScholarGateKessler Psychological Distress Scale (Kessler Psychological Distress Scale-10 (K10)). Retrieved 2026-06-04 from https://scholargate.app/en/clinical-psychology/k10-kessler