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This self-assessment Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale - 11-Item (KADS-11) , was originally developed by Stan Kutcher . TraitProfiler provides an interactive digital version for educational, informational, and self-exploration purposes only.

Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale - 11-Item (KADS-11)

Background

The Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale - 11-Item (KADS-11) is a widely used adolescent self-report screening instrument developed to identify symptoms associated with depression and emotional distress in teenagers and young people.
The KADS-11 focuses on mood symptoms, irritability, sleep difficulties, low motivation, anxiety, emotional distress, fatigue, concentration problems, reduced enjoyment, and suicidal thoughts commonly associated with adolescent depression.
The questionnaire was specifically designed using language and descriptions that are more relatable and understandable for adolescents, helping improve emotional self-awareness and symptom reporting.

Psychological Domains Measured

Depressed Mood
Measures sadness, emotional emptiness, low mood, emotional exhaustion, and reduced emotional engagement.
Irritability
Measures frustration tolerance, anger, emotional reactivity, and difficulty managing emotions.
Sleep Difficulties
Measure insomnia, disrupted sleep patterns, nighttime restlessness, and changes in usual sleep functioning.
Social Withdrawal and Interest Loss
Measure reduced social engagement, loss of interest in activities, and emotional disengagement from relationships and hobbies.
Worthlessness and Hopelessness
Measure negative self-evaluation, hopelessness, guilt, and feelings of personal failure.
Fatigue and Low Energy
Measure tiredness, low motivation, exhaustion, reduced energy, and difficulty initiating tasks.
Concentration Difficulties
Measure attention problems, distractibility, mental focus difficulties, and academic concentration impairment.
Reduced Pleasure and Enjoyment
Measure loss of pleasure, emotional numbness, and reduced ability to enjoy normally enjoyable experiences.
Anxiety and Nervousness
Measure excessive worry, tension, nervousness, panic feelings, and emotional overactivation.
Physical Anxiety Symptoms
Measure bodily symptoms related to anxiety including headaches, nausea, shaking, restlessness, and physical tension.
Self-Harm and Suicidal Thoughts
Measure suicidal thinking, self-harm thoughts, suicidal planning, and self-injurious behavior.
The KADS-11 is commonly used in adolescent psychology, psychiatry, school mental health settings, primary healthcare, youth counseling, and research environments. The questionnaire is intended as a screening instrument and should not be used as a standalone diagnostic tool.

Procedure

Participants are asked to answer each question based on how they have been feeling recently.

For each item, adolescents select the response that best describes the frequency or severity of their emotional experiences, thoughts, behaviors, and physical symptoms.

The questionnaire is brief and designed to help identify emotional difficulties that may benefit from additional support or professional evaluation.

Participation

This assessment is intended for adolescents and young people and is designed for educational, screening, and research purposes only.

Results should not be considered a clinical diagnosis or substitute for professional psychological, psychiatric, or medical evaluation.

Individuals experiencing severe emotional distress, suicidal thoughts, self-harm behavior, hopelessness, or major impairment in daily functioning are strongly encouraged to seek immediate support from a qualified mental health professional, healthcare provider, trusted adult, or emergency service.

Scoring & Interpretation

Responses are scored on a 0–3 scale according to symptom frequency and severity.

Higher scores generally indicate stronger depressive symptoms, anxiety, emotional distress, low motivation, fatigue, concentration difficulties, and suicidal risk indicators.

The KADS-11 is commonly used as a screening tool to help identify adolescents who may benefit from additional mental health support or clinical evaluation.

Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale - 11-Item (KADS-11) Questionnaire

Instructions & Terms

Below is the Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale - 11-Item (KADS-11), a digitally adapted 11- items self-assessment questionnaire. This assessment does not provide a clinical diagnosis, medical determination, or substitute for professional psychological evaluation.

Question 1 of 11 Depressed Mood

Low mood, sadness, feeling blah or down, depressed, just can’t be bothered.


Question 2 of 11 Irritability

Irritable, loosing your temper easily, feeling pissed off, loosing it.


Question 3 of 11 Sleep Difficulties

Sleep difficulties - different from your usual (over the years before you got sick): trouble falling asleep, lying awake in bed.


Question 4 of 11 Social Withdrawal and Interest Loss

Feeling decreased interest in: hanging out with friends; being with your best friend; being with your boyfriend/girlfriend; going out of the house; doing school work or work; doing hobbies or sports or recreation.


Question 5 of 11 Worthlessness and Hopelessness

Feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness, letting people down, not being a good person.


Question 6 of 11 Fatigue and Low Energy

Feeling tired, feeling fatigued, low in energy, hard to get motivated, have to push to get things done, want to rest or lie down a lot.


Question 7 of 11 Concentration Difficulties

Trouble concentrating, can’t keep your mind on schoolwork or work, daydreaming when you should be working, hard to focus when reading, getting “bored” with work or school.


Question 8 of 11 Reduced Pleasure and Enjoyment

Feeling that life is not very much fun, not feeling good when usually (before getting sick) would feel good, not getting as much pleasure from fun things as usual (before getting sick).


Question 9 of 11 Anxiety and Nervousness

Feeling worried, nervous, panicky, tense, keyed up, anxious.


Question 10 of 11 Physical Anxiety Symptoms

Physical feelings of worry like: headaches, butterflies, nausea, tingling, restlessness, diarrhea, shakes or tremors.


Question 11 of 11 Self-Harm and Suicidal Thoughts

Thoughts, plans or actions about suicide or self-harm.




Psychometric Norms

3
Participants
62%
Community Mean
7.5%
Sample SD
70%
Highest Observed Score
52%
Lowest Observed Score
2026–2026
Collection Period

Current normative data for theCurrent normative data for the Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale - 11-Item (KADS-11) are derived from 3 anonymous participant responses collected through TraitProfiler between 2026 and 2026. All response data are collected anonymously and are intended exclusively for educational, psychometric, and non-commercial research purposes.

Sources
  1. SarahJ Brooks, StanleyP Krulewicz, Stan Kutcher. The Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale (KADS).