ABSTRACT
Screening is the testing of apparently healthy volunteers from the general population and separating them into groups with high and low probabilities of a Psychiatric disorder. The objective of screening is the early detection of diseases whose treatment is either easier or more effective when undertaken at an earlier point in time, so that there is an implicit promise that those who volunteer to be screened will benefit. Most screening procedures are pencil-and-paper tests, but other procedures include key informants, short structured interviews, and computer-administered tests. The form of reliability that is most relevant to screening procedures is their internal consistency, usually measured by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient or by split-half reliability. Most screening procedures are pencil-and-paper tests, but other procedures include key informants, short structured interviews, and computer-administered tests.
