Brief Symptom Inventory

What is the Brief Symptom Inventory?

The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) is a widely recognized tool designed to assess and quantify psychiatric symptoms and psychological distress in clinical settings. Developed as a shortened version of the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL90-R), the BSI evaluates symptom severity across symptom dimensions (Derogatis & Spencer, 1982):

• Somatization
• Obsessive-compulsive
• Interpersonal sensitivity
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Hostility
• Phobic anxiety
• Paranoid ideation
• Psychoticism

This tool aids healthcare providers by providing patient-reported data to track and evaluate client progress over the past week, making it integral for clinical decision-making. The BSI also enables practitioners to identify and prioritize areas of concern in a patient's symptoms.

How does this Brief Symptom Inventory work?

The Brief Symptom Inventory template is an essential tool that guides practitioners through assessing psychiatric symptoms, psychological problems, and symptom severity. Here's how to use it:

Step 1: Access the template

Access the template through this guide. Click "Use template" to open it digitally on Carepatron’s platform. Click "Download" for an instant PDF copy to print.

Step 2: Administer the test

Provide the template to the patient, ensuring they understand how to rate their experiences from the past week on a five-point Likert scale. The BSI instrument consists of 53 test items covering nine subscales. These symptom dimensions measure the intensity and extent of the patient's symptoms.

Step 3: Score the responses

Calculate scores for each dimension as well as the total score and global indices scores. These scores measure the patient's psychological distress level, enabling targeted clinical decision-making.

Step 4: Document scores

Record the calculated scores for each dimension, as well as the total score and the global indices scores, in the template. Use the interpretation guidelines provided with the BSI to evaluate the level of psychological distress and identify specific areas of concern.

Scoring

The scoring of the Brief Symptom Inventory provides valuable insights into a patient's psychological profile by summarizing their responses across various metrics.

Dimension scores

Respondents rate items using a 5-point scale from 0 (not at all) to 4 (extremely). These ratings reflect the intensity of distress experienced over the past seven days. The items corresponding to each of the nine primary symptom dimensions are:

• Somatization: 2, 7, 23, 29, 30, 33, 37
• Obsessive-compulsive symptoms: 5, 15, 26, 27, 32, 36
• Interpersonal sensitivity: 20, 21, 22, 42
• Depression: 9, 16, 17, 18, 35, 50
• Anxiety: 1, 12, 19, 38, 45, 49
• Hostility:  6, 13, 40, 41, 46
• Phobic anxiety: 8, 28, 31, 43, 47
• Paranoid ideation: 4, 10, 24, 48, 51
• Psychoticism: 3, 14, 34, 44, 53

Dimension scores are calculated by adding the values of the items within the dimension and dividing the total by the number of items endorsed in that dimension.

Items 11, 25, 39, and 52 do not belong to any dimension but are included for their clinical relevance. For example, conscious feelings of guilt provide valuable insights for clinicians. These items are also factored into the calculation of the grand total score.

Global indices scoring

Scores for the three global indices are calculated as follows:

• Global severity index (GSI): The GSI is determined by summing the scores for the nine symptom dimensions and the four additional items not included in any dimension. This total is then divided by the number of items the respondent answered. If no items are skipped, the GSI represents the mean score for all 53 items.
• Positive symptom total (PST): The PST is the total count of items with non-zero responses. This score reflects the number of symptoms the respondent reports experiencing.
• Positive symptom distress index (PSDI): The PSDI is calculated by dividing the sum of the values for all items with non-zero responses by the PST. This index provides an average measure of the distress intensity experienced by the respondent.

Benefits of this Brief Symptom Inventory

The BSI offers numerous advantages for healthcare professionals in clinical settings.

Comprehensive assessment of psychological distress

By measuring nine primary symptom dimensions such as somatization, interpersonal sensitivity, and phobic anxiety, the BSI provides an in-depth evaluation of a patient's psychological distress level and symptom severity using the three global indices—global severity index, positive symptom total, and positive symptom distress index.

Efficient clinical decision making

The BSI enables practitioners to assess patient-reported data efficiently, interpret patient's symptoms using tools like confirmatory factor analysis, and make informed decisions regarding treatment outcomes and patient progress.

Reliable tracking of client’s progress

The BSI facilitates ongoing monitoring of psychological problems and psychiatric symptoms across various subscales. It allows healthcare providers to evaluate patient progress over the past week and document findings using record forms, digital assets, or report booklets.

Versatility and accessibility

Available in digital platforms like Q-global and physical formats, the BSI includes materials such as stimulus books, test items, and answer sheets, ensuring flexibility in administration and compatibility with older qualification levels or B qualification levels, which the approval level enables for use in all our assessments.

Reference

Derogatis, L. R., & Spencer, P. M. (1982). The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI): Administration, and procedures manual-I. Baltimore, MD: Clinical Psychometric Research.