SCL-90 Symptom Checklist
The SCL-90 (Symptom Checklist-90) is a broad 90-question screening scale that assesses psychological symptoms experienced over the past week across nine dimensions. Rather than focusing on a single disorder, it produces an overall profile of psychological symptoms, making it useful for clinical pre-assessment.
- Questions
- 90
- Est. time
- ~15 min
- Delivery
- Online · remote
- Scoring
- Automatic
What does the SCL-90 Symptom Checklist measure?
- •Somatization, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, interpersonal sensitivity
- •Depression, anxiety, hostility
- •Phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, psychoticism
- •Summary indices such as the Global Severity Index (GSI)
Who is it for?
Used in adults to produce a broad symptom profile and for clinical pre-assessment.
How is the SCL-90 Symptom Checklist scored and interpreted?
Each question is scored 0 (not at all) to 4 (extremely). Questions are grouped into nine subscales; subscale means and the Global Severity Index (GSI) are computed to form a symptom profile.
Frequently asked questions
Which dimensions does the SCL-90 measure?
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It measures nine dimensions: somatization, obsessive-compulsive, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety, hostility, phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, and psychoticism.
How many questions does the SCL-90 have and how long does it take?
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It has 90 questions and takes about 12–15 minutes to complete.
What is the GSI?
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The GSI (Global Severity Index) is an index based on the average of all questions that summarizes a person's overall symptom burden.
Related scales
- Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI)A 21-question self-report scale measuring the severity of anxiety symptoms over the past week.
- Burns Depression Checklist (BDC)A 25-question self-report scale assessing the level of depressive symptoms.
- Padua Inventory (OCD)An inventory assessing obsessive-compulsive symptoms across different content domains.
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) TestA self-report scale screening for PTSD symptoms following a traumatic event.
Source: Derogatis, L. R. (1977).
This page is informational and does not contain the actual questions. The SCL-90 Symptom Checklist is a screening/assessment tool and does not provide a diagnosis on its own. Results should be interpreted only by a licensed mental-health professional as part of a clinical evaluation.
Administer the SCL-90 Symptom Checklist to your clients
With Psikometri, assign this scale remotely via a single link; results are scored automatically and turned into a report. No credit card required.
- ✓Automatic scoring and severity band
- ✓One-click, branded PDF reports
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