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Catalog/HSCL-25
Open licenseGeneral distress / well-being Available now

HSCL-25

Hopkins Symptom Checklist (25-item)

The Hopkins Symptom Checklist (25-item) (HSCL-25) is a 25-item general distress / well-being assessment for adults. It typically takes about 6 minutes to complete, producing a total score from 25 to 100 where higher scores indicate greater symptom severity.

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Items

25

Time to complete

6 min

Population

adult

Score range

25–100

About the HSCL-25

The Hopkins Symptom Checklist (25-item) (HSCL-25) is a 25-item general distress / well-being assessment for adults. It typically takes about 6 minutes to complete, producing a total score from 25 to 100 where higher scores indicate greater symptom severity.

First published in 1974 by Derogatis LR, Lipman RS, Rickels K, Uhlenhuth EH, Covi L, the HSCL-25 is free to use for clinical and research purposes with attribution. With Psyche Assess you can send the HSCL-25 to clients online, score it automatically, and generate a clinician-ready report in seconds.

What it measures

anxietydepression

HSCL-25 questions

Response scale
1 = Not at all2 = A little3 = Quite a bit4 = Extremely
  1. 1

    Suddenly scared for no reason.

    anxiety
  2. 2

    Feeling fearful.

    anxiety
  3. 3

    Faintness, dizziness, or weakness.

    anxiety
  4. 4

    Nervousness or shakiness inside.

    anxiety
  5. 5

    Heart pounding or racing.

    anxiety
  6. 6

    Trembling.

    anxiety
  7. 7

    Feeling tense or keyed up.

    anxiety
  8. 8

    Headaches.

    anxiety
  9. 9

    Spells of terror or panic.

    anxiety
  10. 10

    Feeling restless, cannot sit still.

    anxiety
  11. 11

    Feeling low in energy, slowed down.

    depression
  12. 12

    Blaming yourself for things.

    depression
  13. 13

    Crying easily.

    depression
  14. 14

    Loss of sexual interest or pleasure.

    depression
  15. 15

    Poor appetite.

    depression
  16. 16

    Difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep.

    depression
  17. 17

    Feeling hopeless about the future.

    depressionRisk item
  18. 18

    Feeling blue.

    depression
  19. 19

    Feeling lonely.

    depression
  20. 20

    Thoughts of ending your life.

    depressionRisk item
  21. 21

    Feeling of being trapped or caught.

    depression
  22. 22

    Worry too much about things.

    depression
  23. 23

    Feeling no interest in things.

    depression
  24. 24

    Feeling everything is an effort.

    depression
  25. 25

    Feelings of worthlessness.

    depression

Items reproduced from a documented, freely usable source. Item wording is preserved exactly as published.

Scoring & interpretation

RangeBandInterpretation
25–43Below thresholdTotal mean <1.75 — below the case-positive threshold.
44–100Case-positiveTotal mean ≥1.75 — clinically significant distress; further evaluation recommended.

Higher scores indicate greater symptom severity.

Frequently asked questions

How many items does the HSCL-25 have?

The HSCL-25 has 25 items and takes about 6 minutes to complete.

How is the HSCL-25 scored?

Item responses are summed for a total score from 25 to 100, where higher scores indicate greater severity. Totals fall into the interpretive bands shown above.

Is the HSCL-25 free to use?

The HSCL-25 is free to use for clinical and research purposes provided the authors are credited and the item wording is not altered.

Who is the HSCL-25 for?

The HSCL-25 is designed for adult and is used by clinicians, researchers, and integrated-care teams.

Source & references

AuthorsDerogatis LR, Lipman RS, Rickels K, Uhlenhuth EH, Covi L
First published1974
CitationDerogatis LR, Lipman RS, Rickels K, Uhlenhuth EH, Covi L. The Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL): a self-report symptom inventory. Behav Sci. 1974;19(1):1-15.
PubMed4808738
LicenseOpen license
Source obtained from https://hprt-cambridge.org on 2026-05-16. Every instrument in our catalog has a documented, legitimate source — never scraped from another platform.

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