PSYC 421 SPSS ASSIGNMENT PART 1

SPSS ASSIGNMENT PART 1 INSTRUCTIONS
The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D Scale)
In the Assignment Instructions folder, there is an SPSS data file that will be the basis for your
analysis. The data included are fictional and were created solely for this assignment.
The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D scale) is often utilized to
measure depressive symptomology (Radloff, 1977). It is a self-assessment that is completed by
the individual. The CES-D contains 20-items rated on a 4-point scale (0 = Rarely or None of the
Time to 3 = Most or All of the Time). The phrase “Within the past week did you…” prefaces the
questions in order to emphasize recent depressive mood. Scores are summed and can range from
0 to 60. Traditionally, individuals with scores over 16 are identified as “depressed” (Weissman, et
al., 1977), though due to high false positive rates, a score of 27 is considered a more useful cutoff (Zich, et al., 1990). The full scale can be accessed at:
http://www.chcr.brown.edu/pcoc/cesdscale.pdf. Items 4, 8, 12, and 16 are reversed to avoid “yaysaying” or “nay saying” (Radloff, 1977). Several studies have validated four subscales across a
variety of subgroups (i.e., depressive affect, well-being, somatic, and interpersonal) (Gliem &
Gliem, 2003).
Demographics
You will learn how to go from raw demographic data in SPSS to describing a sample.
For this assignment, you will:
1. Create a table showing the most appropriate descriptive statistics for three (3) of the
demographic variables. You will be graded on the appropriateness of the descriptive
statistics and graphs for each of the demographic variables as well as current APA format
for your tables.
2. Create the most appropriate graphs for the three variables you used for #1 above. Figure
captions should be in APA format.
3. Write a summary paragraph describing the sample. For example: “The sample was based
on xxx# of college students from a private university in the southeastern United States. X
% of the students were males, x% females. Students were primarily… (give the
appropriate descriptor information with %’s or whatever fits the variables you choose to
analyze).

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PSYC 421

References
Gliem, J. A., & Gliem, R. R. (2003). Calculating, interpreting, and reporting
Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient for likert-type scales. Retrieved from
https://scholarworks.iupui.edu/bitstream/handle/1805/344/Gliem%20&%20Gliem.pdf.
Knight, R. G., Williams, S., McGee, R., & Olaman, S. (1997). Psychometric properties of the
Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) in a sample of women in
middle life. Behavior, Research, and Therapy, 35(4), 373–380.
Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D Scale: a self-report depression scale for research in the general
population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, 385–401.
Weissman, M. M., Sholomskas, D., Pottenger, M., et al. (1977). Assessing depressive symptoms
in five psychiatric populations: a validation study. American Journal of Epidemiology,
106, 203–214.
Zich, J. M., C. C. Attkisson, & Greenfield, T.K. (1990). Screening for depression in primary care
clinics: the CES-D and the BDI. International Journal of Psychiatry and Medicine, 20(3),
259–277.
This assignment is due by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday of Module/Week 2.