Measuring depression with a well-being index: Further evidence for the validity of the WHO Well-Being Index (WHO-5) as a measure of the severity of depression

BACKGROUND: In recent years, the WHO Wellbeing Index (WHO-5) has been used as a screening measure for depression. Nevertheless, research on the validity of this measure in the context of clinical depression is sparse.
QUESTIONS: The aim of the present study was to investigate the measurement invariance of the WHO-5 across depressed and non-depressed individuals, as well as the shape and specificity of its relationship to measures of depression severity.
METHOD: Of the 414 subjects who completed the WHO-5 and the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), 207 had a diagnosis of a major depressive episode (MDE). A subsample also completed the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and was assessed by clinicians using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) and the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A).
RESULTS: The WHO-5 demonstrated strong measurement invariance regarding the presence or absence of a current MDE. The WHO-5 showed a very high negative association with self- and observer-rated measures of depressive symptoms, especially in the range of mild to moderate symptoms. These associations were still substantial after controlling for measures of anxiety symptoms.
LIMITATIONS: In addition to a diagnostic interview, only one measure for self- and observer-rated symptoms of depression was used. Furthermore, the observer-rated measure was only assessed in one subsample that exhibited a somewhat restricted range of depression severity.
CONCLUSION: Although this index was originally designed as a measure of well-being, the results support the use of the WHO-5 in the context of depression research.