DASS-21
Depression Anxiety Stress Scales — 21-item version
A single questionnaire measuring depression, anxiety, and stress.
21
4 min
adult
0–63
About the DASS-21
The Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21) is a 21-item self-report measure that yields three separate subscale scores: depression, anxiety, and stress. It was designed to maximise the distinction between these closely related states, making it especially useful when a clinician wants to see which dimension of distress is dominant.
Respondents rate how much each statement applied to them over the past week, from 0 ("did not apply to me at all") to 3 ("applied to me very much"). Each subscale has seven items; subscale sums are multiplied by two so that scores can be compared against the full 42-item DASS norms.
The DASS-21 is free for clinical and research use with attribution, and its three-factor profile is well suited to tracking change across the course of therapy.
What it measures
- Depression — dysphoria, hopelessness, devaluation of life, anhedonia, and inertia
- Anxiety — autonomic arousal, situational anxiety, and the subjective experience of anxious affect
- Stress — persistent tension, irritability, over-reactivity, and difficulty relaxing
DASS-21 questions
- 1
I found it hard to wind down
stress - 2
I was aware of dryness of my mouth
anxiety - 3
I couldn’t seem to experience any positive feeling at all
depression - 4
I experienced breathing difficulty (e.g., excessively rapid breathing, breathlessness in the absence of physical exertion)
anxiety - 5
I found it difficult to work up the initiative to do things
depression - 6
I tended to over-react to situations
stress - 7
I experienced trembling (e.g., in the hands)
anxiety - 8
I felt that I was using a lot of nervous energy
stress - 9
I was worried about situations in which I might panic and make a fool of myself
anxiety - 10
I felt that I had nothing to look forward to
depression - 11
I found myself getting agitated
stress - 12
I found it difficult to relax
stress - 13
I felt down-hearted and blue
depression - 14
I was intolerant of anything that kept me from getting on with what I was doing
stress - 15
I felt I was close to panic
anxiety - 16
I was unable to become enthusiastic about anything
depression - 17
I felt I wasn’t worth much as a person
depression - 18
I felt that I was rather touchy
stress - 19
I was aware of the action of my heart in the absence of physical exertion (e.g., sense of heart rate increase, heart missing a beat)
anxiety - 20
I felt scared without any good reason
anxiety - 21
I felt that life was meaningless
depression
Items reproduced from a documented, freely usable source. Item wording is preserved exactly as published.
Scoring & interpretation
The DASS-21 takes three to four minutes. Each subscale is summed and multiplied by two, then compared to severity bands ranging from normal to extremely severe. Because the bands differ by subscale, interpret each dimension against its own thresholds rather than a single total.
depression subscale
| Range | Band |
|---|---|
| 0–9 | Normal |
| 10–13 | Mild |
| 14–20 | Moderate |
| 21–27 | Severe |
| 28–42 | Extremely severe |
anxiety subscale
| Range | Band |
|---|---|
| 0–7 | Normal |
| 8–9 | Mild |
| 10–14 | Moderate |
| 15–19 | Severe |
| 20–42 | Extremely severe |
stress subscale
| Range | Band |
|---|---|
| 0–14 | Normal |
| 15–18 | Mild |
| 19–25 | Moderate |
| 26–33 | Severe |
| 34–42 | Extremely severe |
Clinical applications
- Differentiating depression, anxiety, and stress in one brief measure
- Routine outcome monitoring across a course of psychological therapy
- Research where dimensional measures of negative affect are required
Validation & psychometrics
The DASS subscales show high internal consistency and a robust three-factor structure across clinical and non-clinical samples (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995). The depression and anxiety scales correlate as expected with other established measures, supporting convergent validity.
Strengths & considerations
- There is no single overall DASS-21 cut-off — interpret each subscale separately.
- The measure assesses dimensional severity, not diagnosis.
Frequently asked questions
How is the DASS-21 scored?
Each of the three subscales (depression, anxiety, stress) is summed from seven items and multiplied by two, then compared to subscale-specific severity bands from normal to extremely severe.
Why are DASS-21 scores doubled?
The DASS-21 is the short form of the 42-item DASS. Subscale sums are multiplied by two so they can be read against the original DASS-42 norms and severity bands.
Is the DASS-21 free?
Yes. The DASS is free to use for clinical and research purposes provided the authors are credited and item wording is not changed.
Source & references
Ready to administer this assessment?
Send it to clients in seconds, score automatically, and generate a clinician-ready report.