Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire 7 (GAD-7)

The Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7) is a questionnaire designed to screen for and measure the severity of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). The GAD-7 contains 7 short items that measure the severity of various GAD symptoms according to reported response categories with associated scores. The items refer to a time horizon of the past two weeks. The GAD-7 is not intended to provide a diagnosis of GAD (it is a screening tool only).

Length of completion

The GAD-7 takes approximately 3 minutes to complete.

Individualized feedback for the respondent

By evaluating the questionnaire, the respondent will know whether or not he/she has symptoms of GAD.

Keywords

Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire, GAD-7, GAD, generalized anxiety disorder, anxiety

Scoring and interpretation

The total score is obtained by summing the scores for all items. Higher scores indicate higher levels of potential anxiety. If the score is 10 or higher, a clinical examination is recommended to establish a diagnosis of GAD.

Response Scale

Respondents rate the frequency of anxiety symptoms in the past two weeks on a Likert scale of “not at all” (0), “a few days” (1), “more than half the days” (2), and “almost every day” (3).

References

Löwe, B., Decker, O., Müller, S., Brähler, E., Schellberg, D., Herzog, W., & Herzberg, P. (2008). Validation and Standardization of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Screener (GAD-7) in the General Population. Medical Care, 46(3), 266-274. https://doi.org/10.1097/MLR.0b013e318160d093

Plummer, F., Manea, L., Trepel, D., & McMillan, D. (2016). Screening for anxiety disorders with the GAD-7 and GAD-2: a systematic review and diagnostic metaanalysis. General Hospital Psychiatry, 39, 24-31. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2015.11.005

Prikner, O. (2021). Vybrané psychometrické charakteristiky škály GAD-7 [Diplomová práce, Masarykova univerzita]. https://is.muni.cz/th/imwek/Diplomova-prace-finis.pdf

Spitzer, R., Kroenke, K., Williams, J., & Lowe, B. (2006). A Brief Measure for Assessing Generalized Anxiety Disorder: The GAD-7. Archives of Internal Medicine, 166(10), 1092-1097. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinte.166.10.1092