Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale

Issue the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale to your client to assess the severity of their depression and see what you can do based on the results!

By Matt Olivares on Aug 2, 2025.

Fact Checked by RJ Gumban.

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What is a depression scale?

Depression rating scales like the Beck Depression Inventory and Geriatric Depression Scale are instruments that commonly come in the form of questionnaires. These scales aim to gauge the severity of a person's major depressive disorder and determine if they have mild, moderate, or severe depression. It's also worth noting that these aren't used to diagnose people but to determine if they should be up for diagnosis. These instruments also assign score ranges and designations to help psychologists and related health practitioners assess the course of action to help their patients/clients.

Depression scales come in the following forms:

Self-assessments were issued to patients for them to answer
Some are used just by the practitioner, and they will simply observe and answer prompts based on their observations
Some are worked on by both the practitioner and the patient/client

For this particular guide, we'll be using the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale, which comes in the form of a self-assessment!

Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale Template

Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale PDF Template

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How to use the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale

The Zung Self-rating Depression Scale was designed and developed by William W.K. Zung, MD (1929-1992), a psychiatrist from Duke University.

This scale presupposes that your patient has already been diagnosed with depressive disorder. Here are the steps you need to take to complete the depression scale.

Issue the scale to your patient

The scale is fairly easy to use. You simply need to issue it to your patient and have them rate themselves based on the following prompts:

I feel downhearted and blue
Morning is when I feel the best
I have crying spells or feel like crying
I have trouble sleeping at night
I eat as much as I used to
I still enjoy sex
I notice that I'm losing weight
I have trouble with constipation
My heart beats faster than usual
I get tired for no reason
My mind is as clear as it used to be
I find it easy to do the things I used to
I am restless and can't keep still
I feel hopeful about the future
I am more irritable than usual
I find it easy to make decisions
I feel that I am useful and needed
My life is pretty full
I feel that others would be better off if I were dead
I still enjoy the things I used to do

They will answer themselves by picking one of four answers per item:

A little of the time
Some of the time
Good part of the time
Most of the time

Tally the score and determine the treatment plan you think your client needs

This depression scale has score ranges:

25-49 = Normal range
50-59 = Mildly depressed
60-69 = Moderately depressed
70-80 = Severely depressed

Once you've totaled your patient's score, your next step is to determine a suitable treatment plan for them. Please note that this scale should not be used to diagnose major depression. It would be best to conduct other assessments and interviews first, then cross-check findings with the diagnostic criteria set by the most recent edition of The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders before making a diagnosis.

When would you typically use the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale?

The Zung Self-rating Depression Scale can be used as soon as you decide to assess your client's depression severity. The scale presupposes that your patient/client has already been diagnosed with depression, so the goal entails determining what needs to be done to help them.

This also isn't a one-off thing. Let's say the patient is already in the middle of a treatment plan. You can reissue the scale regularly to determine whether there are any significant changes.

Reissuing this now and then will help you determine whether your plan is working and if you need to improve.

Who can use this printable Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale?

The following healthcare practitioners can use the Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale for their respective practices:

Clinical psychologists
Psychiatrists
Mental health therapists
Counselors

Why is this assessment popular and useful for psychologists?

It's straightforward and easy to use

All that needs to be done from your patient's end is for them to rate themselves per item. On your end, you simply need to add up the scores. Don't forget to use the cheat sheet because some items have a negative framing, while some are positive, so answers score differently.

It'll help you create a treatment plan for your patient

Since the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale comes with score ranges and designations, the assessment results should help you develop a care plan to treat your patient and help with their depression.

It's also a good way to monitor your patient

Issuing this depression scale to your patient doesn't need to be a one-off. You can reissue this occasionally (the frequency and time between each reissue are up to you). Doing so will help you monitor your patient to see if your treatment plan is working and if you need to adjust it.

Commonly asked questions

A good number of depression scales come with number ranges, each with a designation for a severity level. The Zung Self-rating Depression Scale comes with number ranges to help you gauge your patient’s depression severity level.

While it does sound strange to quantify a depression’s severity level, what the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale and many other depression scales do is create a semblance of objectivity through their score ranges and designations. They are there to give you an idea of how mild or severe your patient’s depression is, as well as help you determine what goes into your treatment plan for them.

Self-forgiveness can help people let go of harsh self-criticisms. It can also help them realize that they’re human and they’ve made mistakes. Once they realize these, they can take the steps to move on and do better.