Article Version of Record

The background, psychometric qualities and clinical application of the visual analog mood scales: A review and evaluation

Author(s) / Creator(s)

Athanasou, James

Abstract / Description

The purpose of this report is to evaluate the published version of the Visual Analog Mood Scales. These scales were published in 1997 and assess eight clinically relevant unipolar dimensions: afraid, confused, sad, angry, energetic, tired, happy, tense. From a search of the literature in PsycINFO, 24 empirical studies (including reliability and validity) were located on the application of the scales. The use of the scales for diagnosis, treatment and experimentation is described and published data on the test-retest reliability and validity of the scales is summarized. The reported test-retest correlations ranged from .43 to .87 and were considered too low for high stakes decisions. From nine studies, the concurrent validity coefficients across the eight scales ranged from a low of .12 to as high as .82. It is concluded that the scales have clinical utility for a quasi-non-verbal or pictorial assessment of mood states but there are limitations in the interpretation of the results. This is due to the shortcomings in the standardization samples as well as concerns for the psychometric quality in terms of validity and reliability.

Keyword(s)

mood visual analogue assessment Visual Analog Mood Scales

Persistent Identifier

Date of first publication

2019-12-09

Journal title

Psychological Thought

Volume

12

Issue

2

Page numbers

265–276

Publisher

PsychOpen GOLD

Publication status

publishedVersion

Review status

peerReviewed

Is version of

Citation

Athanasou, J. (2019). The background, psychometric qualities and clinical application of the visual analog mood scales: A review and evaluation. Psychological Thought, 12(2), 265–276. https://doi.org/10.5964/psyct.v12i2.370
  • Author(s) / Creator(s)
    Athanasou, James
  • PsychArchives acquisition timestamp
    2020-01-16T14:40:41Z
  • Made available on
    2020-01-16T14:40:41Z
  • Date of first publication
    2019-12-09
  • Abstract / Description
    The purpose of this report is to evaluate the published version of the Visual Analog Mood Scales. These scales were published in 1997 and assess eight clinically relevant unipolar dimensions: afraid, confused, sad, angry, energetic, tired, happy, tense. From a search of the literature in PsycINFO, 24 empirical studies (including reliability and validity) were located on the application of the scales. The use of the scales for diagnosis, treatment and experimentation is described and published data on the test-retest reliability and validity of the scales is summarized. The reported test-retest correlations ranged from .43 to .87 and were considered too low for high stakes decisions. From nine studies, the concurrent validity coefficients across the eight scales ranged from a low of .12 to as high as .82. It is concluded that the scales have clinical utility for a quasi-non-verbal or pictorial assessment of mood states but there are limitations in the interpretation of the results. This is due to the shortcomings in the standardization samples as well as concerns for the psychometric quality in terms of validity and reliability.
    en_US
  • Publication status
    publishedVersion
  • Review status
    peerReviewed
  • Citation
    Athanasou, J. (2019). The background, psychometric qualities and clinical application of the visual analog mood scales: A review and evaluation. Psychological Thought, 12(2), 265–276. https://doi.org/10.5964/psyct.v12i2.370
    en_US
  • ISSN
    2193-7281
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12034/2325
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.2711
  • Language of content
    eng
  • Publisher
    PsychOpen GOLD
  • Is version of
    https://doi.org/10.5964/psyct.v12i2.370
  • Keyword(s)
    mood
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    visual analogue
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    assessment
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    Visual Analog Mood Scales
    en_US
  • Dewey Decimal Classification number(s)
    150
  • Title
    The background, psychometric qualities and clinical application of the visual analog mood scales: A review and evaluation
    en_US
  • DRO type
    article
  • Issue
    2
  • Journal title
    Psychological Thought
  • Page numbers
    265–276
  • Volume
    12
  • Visible tag(s)
    Version of Record