Mood and Feelings questionnaire (MFQ)
The Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ) (Angold et al., 1995) is a 34-item scale designed to measure childhood and adolescent depression, which encompasses affective, cognitive, vegetative, and suicidality. Different versions of the scale have been created which include a subset of the original 34 items.
Reference
Angold, A., Costello, E. J., Messer, S. C., Pickles, A., Winder, F., & Silver, D. (1995). The development of a short questionnaire for use in epidemiological studies of depression in children and adolescents. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 5, 237-249. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cps_facarticles/628/
List of questions
| Question number | Question | Original 34-item version | Original 33-item version | 18-item version | 17-item version | 13-item version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt miserable or unhappy. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 2 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he didn’t enjoy anything at all. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 3 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he was less hungry than usual. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 4 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he ate more than usual. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 5 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt so tired s/he just sat around and did nothing. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 6 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he was moving and walking more slowly than usual. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 7 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he was very restless. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 8 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt s/he was no good anymore. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 9 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he blamed him/herself for things that weren’t his/her fault. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 10 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. It was hard for him/her to make up his/her mind. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 11 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt grumpy and cross with his/her parents. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 12 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt like talking less than usual. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 13 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he was talking more slowly than usual. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 14 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he cried a lot. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 15 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought there was nothing good for him/her in the future. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 16 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought that life wasn’t worth living. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 17 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought about death or dying. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 18 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought his/her family would be better off without him/her. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 19 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought about killing him/herself. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 20 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he didn’t want to see his/her friends. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 21 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he found it hard to think properly or concentrate. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 22 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought bad things would happen to him/her. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 23 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he hated him/herself. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 24 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt s/he was a bad person. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 25 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought S/he looked ugly. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 26 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he worried about aches and pains. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 27 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt lonely. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 28 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought nobody really loved him/her. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 29 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he didn’t have any fun in school. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 30 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he thought s/he could never be as good as other kids. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 31 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he felt s/he did everything wrong. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 32 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he didn’t sleep as well as I usually sleep. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 33 | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he slept a lot more than usual. | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 34* | For each question, please check (✓) how s/he has been feeling or acting in the past two weeks. S/he wasn’t as happy as usual, even when s/he was praised or rewarded. | ✓ | ||||
| Items which are not included in the original version | ||||||
| 35 | I have been having fun | ✓ | ||||
| 36 | I felt happy | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| 37 | I enjoyed doing lots of things | ✓ | ||||
| 38 | I have had a good time | ✓ | ||||
| 39 | I laughed a lot | ✓ | ||||
| 40 | I felt valued | ✓ | ||||
| 41 | I looked forward to the day ahead | ✓ | ||||
| 42 | I felt really positive about the future | ✓ | ||||
Note: The item with the asterisk ( * ) is only present in the Parent Report on Child Long Version of the Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, not the Child Self-Report Long Version Questionnaire.
Use of this scale in CLOSER Discovery study questionnaires and datasets
| Version | Study | Year | Questionnaire | Dataset |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18-item version | ALSPAC | 2014-2015 | Your Life at 22+ | ALSPAC Life at 22+ Questionnaire Dataset |
| 18-item version | ALSPAC | 2015-2016 | Your Life at 23+ | ALSPAC Me at 23+ Qustionnaire Dataset |
| 17-item version | ALSPAC | - | Your Life at 25+ | ALSPAC Life at 25+ Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2001-2002 | Your Son at 9 | ALSPAC Your Son/Daughter at 9 Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2002-2004 | Being a Boy/Girl | ALSPAC Being a Boy/Girl Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2004-2006 | My Teenage Son | ALSPAC My Teenage Son/Daughter Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2007-2009 | Life of a 16+ Teenager | ALSPAC Life of a 16+ Teenager Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2008-2009 | Your Son/Daughter 16+ Years On | ALSPAC Your Son/Daughter 16+ Years On Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2008-2010 | Department for Children, Schools and Families Plans and Aspirations Questionnaire | ALSPAC Plans and Aspirations (DCSF) Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2010-2011 | Your Changing Life | ALSPAC Your Changing Life Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2013-2014 | Your Life Now 21+ | ALSPAC Your Life Now (21+) Questionnaire Dataset |
| 13-item version | MCS | 2015-2016 | MCS Age 14 Young Person Questionnaire | - |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2020 | Cohort Member COVID-19 Questionnaire 1 | ALSPAC COVID Questionnaire 1 Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2020 | Cohort Member COVID-19 Questionnaire 2 | ALSPAC COVID Questionnaire 2 Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2020 | Parent COVID-19 Questionnaire 1 | ALSPAC COVID Questionnaire 1 Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | 2020 | Parent COVID-19 Questionnaire 2 | ALSPAC COVID Questionnaire 2 Dataset |
| 13-item version | ALSPAC | - | Parent COVID-19 Questionnaire 6 | - |
| 13-item version | WCHADS | 2019-2020 | WCHADS Phase 15 Child Questionnaire | - |
| 13-item version | WCHADS | 2019-2020 | WCHADS Phase 15 Mother Questionnaire | - |
| 13-item version | WCHADS | 2020-2021 | WCHADS Phase 15 Child COVID Only Questionnaire | - |
| 13-item version | WCHADS | 2020-2021 | WCHADS Phase 15 Child COVID Retest | - |
| 13-item version | WCHADS | 2020-2021 | WCHADS Phase 15 Mother COVID Only Questionnaire | - |
| 13-item version | WCHADS | 2020-2021 | WCHADS Phase 15 Mother COVID Retest | - |