Skip to main content
PMC home page
International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research logoLink to International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research
. 2006 Mar 24;13(2):60–68. doi: 10.1002/mpr.166

The National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS‐R): background and aims

Ronald C Kessler 1,✉, Kathleen R Merikangas 2
PMCID: PMC6878416  PMID: 15297904

Abstract

The National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS‐R) is a new nationally representative community household survey of the prevalence and correlates of mental disorders in the US. The NCS‐R was carried out a decade after the original NCS. The NCS‐R repeats many of the questions from the NCS and also expands the NCS questioning to include assessments based on the more recent Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM‐IV) diagnostics system (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). The NCS‐R was designed to (1) investigate time trends and their correlates over the decade of the 1990s and (2) expand the assessment of the prevalence and correlates of mental disorders beyond the assessment in the baseline NCS in order to address a number of important substantive and methodological issues that were raised by the NCS. This paper presents a brief review of these aims. Copyright © 2004 Whurr Publishers Ltd.

Keywords: community survey, epidemiologic research design, National Comorbidity Survey Replication, psychiatric epidemiology

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (151.1 KB).

References

  1. American Psychiatric Association . Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Second edition Washington DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1980. [Google Scholar]
  2. American Psychiatric Association . Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third edition, Revised. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Press, 1987. [Google Scholar]
  3. American Psychiatric Association . Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth edition Washington DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1994. [Google Scholar]
  4. Aronson TA, Craig TJ. Cocaine precipitation of panic disorder. Am J Psychiatry 1986; 143: 643–5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Berghofer G, Schmidl F, Rudas S, Steiner E, Schmitz M. Predictors of treatment discontinuity in outpatient mental health care. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 2002; 37(6): 276–82. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Boyd JH, Burke JD, Gruenberg E, Holzer CEI, Rae DS, George LK, Karno M, Stoltzman R, McEvoy L, Nestadt G. Exclusion criteria of DSM‐III: a study of co‐occurrence of hierarchy‐free syndromes. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1984; 41: 983–9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Cantor CH, Leenaars AA, Lester D, Slater PJ, Wolanowski AM, O'Toole B. Suicide trends in eight predominantly English‐speaking countries 1960–1989. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 1996; 31(6): 364–73. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Christiana JM, Gilman SE, Guardino M, Mickelson K, Morselli PL, Olfson M, Kessler RC. Duration between onset and time of obtaining initial treatment among people with anxiety and mood disorders: an international survey of members of mental health patient advocate groups. Psychol Med 2000; 30(3): 693–703. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Christie KA, Burke JDJ, Regier DA, Rae DS, Boyd JH, Locke BZ. Epidemiologic evidence for early onset of mental disorders and higher risk of drug‐abuse in young‐adults. Am J Psychiatry 1988; 145(8): 971–5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Demyttenaere K, Enzlin P, Dewe W, Boulanger B, De Bie J, De Troyer W and Mesters P. Compliance with antidepressants in a primary care setting, 1: Beyond lack of efficacy and adverse events. J Clin Psychiatry 2001; 62 Suppl 22: 30–3. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Giuffra LA, Risch N. Diminished recall and the cohort effect of major depression: a simulation study. Psychol Med 1994; 24(2): 375–83. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Gurin G, Veroff J, Feld SC. Americans View their Mental Health: A Nationwide Interview. New York: Basic Books Inc., 1960. [Google Scholar]
  13. Helzer JE, Canino G, Hwu H, Bland RC, Newman S, Yeh EK. Alcoholism: a cross‐national comparison of population surveys with the Diagnostic Interview Schedule In Rose RM, Barrett JE. eds. Alcoholism: Origins and Outcomes. New York: Raven Press, 1988, 31–47. [Google Scholar]
  14. Houck PR, Spiegel DA, Shear MK, Rucci P. Reliability of the self‐report version of the panic disorder severity scale. Depress Anxiety 2002; 15(4): 183–5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Johnston LD, Bachman JG, O'Malley PM. Monitoring the future: questionnaire responses from the nation's high school seniors. Ann Arbor MI: Institute of Social Research, 1998. [Google Scholar]
  16. Kessler RC. Epidemiology of psychiatric comorbidity In Tsuang MT, Tohen M, Zahner GEP. eds. Textbook in Psychiatric Epidemiology. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1995, 179–97. [Google Scholar]
  17. Kessler RC, Berglund P, Chiu WT, Demler O, Heeringa S, Hiripi E, Jin R, Pennell B‐E, Walter SD, Zaslavsky AM, Zheng H. The US National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS‐R): an overview of design and field procedures. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research 2004; (this issue). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed]
  18. Kessler RC, Frank RG. The impact of psychiatric disorders on work loss days. Psychol Med 1997; 27(4): 861–73. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Kessler RC, McGonagle KA, Zhao S, Nelson CB, Hughes M, Eshleman S, Wittchen H‐U, Kendler KS. Lifetime and 12‐month prevalence of DSM‐III‐R psychiatric disorders in the United States: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1994; 51(1): 8–19. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Kessler RC, Nelson CB, McGonagle KA, Edlund MJ, Frank RG, Leaf PJ. The epidemiology of co‐occurring addictive and mental disorders: implications for prevention and service utilization. Am J Orthopsychiatry 1996; 66(1): 17–31. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Kessler RC, Olfson M, Berglund PA. Patterns and predictors of treatment contact after first onset of psychiatric disorders. Am J Psychiatry 1998; 155(1): 62–9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Kessler RC, Ormel J, Demler O and Stang PE. Comorbid mental disorders account for the role impairment of commonly occurring chronic physical disorders: results from the national comorbidity survey. J Occup Environ Med 2003; 45(12): 1257–66. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Kessler RC, Soukup J, Davis RB, Foster DF, Wilkey SA, Van Rompay MM, Eisenberg DM. The use of complementary and alternative therapies to treat anxiety and depression in the United States. Am J Psychiatry 2001; 158(2): 289–94. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Kessler RC, Walters EE. The National Comorbidity Survey In Tsaung MT, Tohen M. eds. Textbook in Psychiatric Epidemiology. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002, 343–62. [Google Scholar]
  25. Kessler RC, Wittchen H‐U, Abelson JM, McGonagle K, Schwarz N, Kendler KS, Knauper B, Zhao S. Methodological studies of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) in the US National Comorbidity Survey. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research 1998; 7(1): 33–55. [Google Scholar]
  26. Kessler RC, Zhao S, Katz SJ, Kouzis AC, Frank RG, Edlund M, Leaf P. Past‐year use of outpatient services for psychiatric problems in the National Comorbidity Survey. Am J Psychiatry 1999; 156(1): 115–23. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Kouzis AC, Eaton WW. Emotional disability days: prevalence and predictors. Am J Public Health 1994; 84(8): 1304–7. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Leon AC, Olfson M, Portera L, Farber L, Sheehan DV. Assessing psychiatric impairment in primary care with the Sheehan Disability Scale. Int J Psychiatry Med 1997; 27(2): 93–105. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Loringer AW, Sartorius N, Janca A. eds. Assessment and diagnosis of personality disorders: the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE). New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996. [Google Scholar]
  30. Meltzer H, Baljit G, Petticrew M, Hinds K. Prevalence of Psychiatric Morbidity Among Adults Living in Private Households. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1995. [Google Scholar]
  31. Merikangas KR, Mehta RL, Molnar BE, Walters EE, Swendsen JD, Aguilar‐Gaziola S, Bijl R, Borges G, Caraveo‐Anduaga JJ, DeWit DJ, Kolody B, Vega WA, Wittchen HU, Kessler RC. Comorbidity of substance use disorders with mood and anxiety disorders: results of the International Consortium in Psychiatric Epidemiology. Addict Behav 1998; 23(6): 893–907. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  32. Narrow WE, Rae DS, Robins LN, Regier DA. Revised prevalence estimates of mental disorders in the United States: using a clinical significance criterion to reconcile 2 surveys' estimates. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2002; 59(2): 115–23. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  33. National Research Council . Pathological Gambling: a Critical Review. Washington DC: National Academy Press, 1999. [Google Scholar]
  34. Olfson M, Kessler RC, Berglund PA, Lin E. Psychiatric disorder onset and first treatment contact in the United States and Ontario. Am J Psychiatry 1998; 155(10): 1415–22. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  35. Olfson M, Marcus SC, Druss B, Elinson L, Tanielian T, Pincus HA. National trends in the outpatient treatment of depression. JAMA 2002; 287(2): 203–9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  36. Perugi G, Akiskal HS. The soft bipolar spectrum redefined: focus on the cyclothmic, anxious‐sensitive, impulse‐dyscontrol, and binge‐eating connection in bipolar II and related conditions. Psychiatr Clin North Am 2002; 25(4): 713–37. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  37. Regier DA, Kaelber CT, Rae DS, Farmer ME, Knauper B, Kessler RC, Norquist GS. Limitations of diagnostic criteria and assessment instruments for mental disorders. Implications for research and policy. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1998; 55(2): 109–15. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  38. Regier DA, Narrow WE, Rae DS, Manderscheid RW, Locke BZ, Goodwin FK. The de facto US Mental and Addictive Disorders Service System: Epidemiologic Catchment Area prospective 1‐year prevalence rates of disorders and services. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1993; 50: 85–94. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  39. Rehm J, Ustun TB, Saxena S, Nelson CB, Chatterji S, Ivis F, Adlaf E. On the development and psychometric testing of the WHO screening instrument to assess disablement in the general population. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research 1999; 8: 110–23. [Google Scholar]
  40. Robins LN, Helzer JE, Croughan JL, Ratcliff KS. National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule: its history, characteristics and validity. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1981; 38(4): 381–9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  41. Robins LN, Regier DA. eds. Psychiatric Disorders in America: The Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study. New York: The Free Press, 1991. [Google Scholar]
  42. Robins LN, Wing J, Wittchen H‐U, Helzer JE, Babor TF, Burke JD, Farmer A, Jablenski A, Pickens R, Regier DA, Sartorius N, Towle LH. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview: an epidemiologic instrument suitable for use in conjunction with different diagnostic systems and in different cultures. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1988; 45(12): 1069–77. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  43. Rush AJ, Gullion CM, Basco MR, Jarrett RB, Trivedi MH. The Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (IDS): psychometric properties. Psychol Med 1996; 26(3): 477–86. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  44. Shear MK, Brown TA, Barlow DH, Money R, Sholomskas DE, Woods SW, Gorman JM, Papp LA. Multicenter collaborative panic disorder scale. Am J Psychiatry 1997; 154(11): 1571–5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  45. Simon GE, Von Korff M. Recall of psychiatric history in cross‐sectional surveys: implications for epidemiologic research. Epidemiol Rev 1995; 17: 221–7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  46. Toce‐Gerstein M, Gerstein DR, Volberg RA. A hierarchy of gambling disorders in the community. Addiction 2003; 98(12): 1661–72. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  47. Veroff J, Douvan E, Kulka R. The Inner American: A Self Portrait from 1957 to 1976. New York: Basic Books, 1981. [Google Scholar]
  48. Wang PS, Berglund P, Kessler RC. Recent care of common mental disorders in the United States: prevalence and conformance with evidence‐based recommendations. J Gen Intern Med 2000; 15(5): 284–92. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  49. Wang PS, Demler O, Kessler RC. Adequacy of treatment for serious mental illness in the United States. Am J Public Health 2002; 92(1): 92–8. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  50. Weissman MM. Advances in psychiatric epidemiology: rates and risks for major depression. Am J Public Health 1987; 77(4): 445–51. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  51. Zubin J, Gurland BJ. The United States–United Kingdom project on diagnosis of the mental disorders. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1977; 285: 676–86. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research are provided here courtesy of Wiley

RESOURCES