The K10 is a widely used, recommended measurement of psychological distress. It is a self report measure and designed for use in the general population.
The K10 has 5 possible responses for each question: all of the time, most of the time, some of the time, a little of the time and none of the time. They are scored from 5 through to 1.
The maximum score is 50 indicating severe distress, the minimum score is 10 indicating no distress.
The breakdown is as follows:
| K10 Score | Level of psychological distress |
|---|---|
| 10-15 | Low |
| 16-21 | Moderate |
| 22-29 | High |
| 30-50 | Very high |
Reference
Kessler RC, Barker PR, Colpe LJ, Epstein JF, Gfroerer JC, Hiripi E, et al. Screening for serious mental illness in the general population. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2003 Feb;60(2):184-9.
