An item bank is a large collection of questions or symptoms that represent a disorder or trait. The key difference between item banks and classical symptom scales is the application of Item Response Theory (IRT) to generate information about the relationship between a person’s score and the probability of responding to each symptom. 

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Our item banks seek to substantially improve on the relevance and validity of traditional self-report symptom scales developed using classical test theory.

 

Currently we have developed item banks for eight common mental disorders among the adult population: social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, drug use, psychotic-like experiences, and suicidal thoughts and behaviours. Child and adolescent versions of selected item banks are currently in development. We used a similar method as the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) to complement their existing item banks for depression and anxiety. 

 

The individual item banks and scoring programs are freely available for non-profit research or clinical settings.