yale brown obsessive compulsive scale y bocs

Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)

Obsession

Instructions:

“Obsessions” are unwelcome and distressing ideas, thoughts, images or impulses that repeatedly enter your mind. They may seem to occur against your will. They may be repugnant to you, you may recognise them as senseless, and they may not fit your personality.

“Compulsions”, on the other hand, are behaviours or acts that you feel driven to perform although you may recognise them as senseless or excessive. At times, you may try to resist doing them but this may prove difficult. You may experience anxiety that does not diminish until the behaviour is completed.

Rate the average occurrence of each item during the prior week up to and including the time of the interview.

Time spent on obsessions.
  1. 0 hours per day
  2. 0-1 hour per day
  3. 1-3 hours per day
  4. 3-8 hours per day
  5. More than 8 hours per day
Interference from obsessions.
  1. None
  2. Mild
  3. Definite but manageable
  4. Substantial impairment
  5. Incapacitating
Distress from obsessions.
  1. None
  2. Little
  3. Moderate but manageable
  4. Severe
  5. Near constant, disabling
Resistance to obsessions.
  1. Always resists
  2. Much resistance
  3. Some resistance
  4. Often yields
  5. Completely yields
Control over obsessions.
  1. Complete control
  2. Much control
  3. Some control
  4. Little control
  5. No control
Time spent on compulsions.
  1. 0 hour per day
  2. 0-1 hour per day
  3. 1-3 hours per day
  4. 3-8 hours per day
  5. More than 8 hours per day
Interference from compulsions.
  1. None
  2. Mild
  3. Definite but manageable
  4. Substantial impairment
  5. Incapacitating
Distress from compulsions.
  1. None
  2. Little
  3. Moderate but manageable
  4. Severe
  5. Near constant, disabling
Resistance to compulsions.
  1. Always resists
  2. Much resistance
  3. Some resistance
  4. Often yields
  5. Completely yields
Control over compulsions.
  1. Complete control
  2. Much control
  3. Some control
  4. Little control
  5. No control

Description

The Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) is a 10-item scale designed to measure the severity and type of symptoms in people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) over the past seven days. The symptoms assessed are obsessions and compulsions. This scale is useful in tracking OCD symptoms at intake and during/after treatment.

Validity and Reliability

This scale was validated by Goodman et al. (1989b) who found that the Y-BOCS was significantly correlated with two independent measures of OCD. The same study also showed that the Y-BOCS is sensitive to changes in OCD symptoms. The Y-BOCS also has high internal consistency and high interrater reliability (Goodman et al., 1989a).

Interpretation

Total Y-BOCS scores range from 0 to 40, with higher scores indicating greater severity of OCD symptoms. Scores on the obsession and compulsion subscales range from 0 to 20, but only the total Y-BOCS score is interpreted. Total scores can be split into five categories, based on severity of symptoms. People who have a total Y-BOCS score: Under 7 are likely to be subclinical, 8-15 are likely to have a mild case of OCD, 16-23 are likely to have a moderate case of OCD, 24-31 are likely to have a severe case of OCD, 32-40 are likely to have an extreme case of OCD.

Developer

Goodman, W. K., Price, L. H., Rasmussen, S. A., Mazure, C., Fleischmann, R. L., Hill, C. L., … Charney, D. S. (1989a). The Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. I. Development, Use, and Reliability. Archives of General Psychiatry, 46(11), 1006-1011.

Number Of Questions

10

References

Goodman, W. K., Price, L. H., Rasmussen, S. A., Mazure, C., Delgado, P., Heninger, G. R., & Charney, D. S. (1989b). The Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale. II. Validity. Archives of General Psychiatry, 46(11), 1012-1016.

Developer Reference:

Goodman, W. K., Price, L. H., Rasmussen, S. A., Mazure, C., Fleischmann, R. L., Hill, C. L.,Charney, D. S. (1989a). The Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. I. Development, Use, and Reliability. Archives of General Psychiatry, 46(11), 1006-1011.

 

Cite this article

Mohammed looti (2026). Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS). PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. Retrieved from https://scales.arabpsychology.com/s/yale-brown-obsessive-compulsive-scale-y-bocs-2/

Mohammed looti. "Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)." PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES, 2 Apr. 2026, https://scales.arabpsychology.com/s/yale-brown-obsessive-compulsive-scale-y-bocs-2/.

Mohammed looti. "Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)." PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES, 2026. https://scales.arabpsychology.com/s/yale-brown-obsessive-compulsive-scale-y-bocs-2/.

Mohammed looti (2026) 'Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)', PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. Available at: https://scales.arabpsychology.com/s/yale-brown-obsessive-compulsive-scale-y-bocs-2/.

[1] Mohammed looti, "Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)," PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES, vol. X, no. Y, ص Z-Z, April, 2026.

Mohammed looti. Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS). PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. 2026;vol(issue):pages.

Related terms:

  1. Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS)
  2. Yale – Brown obsessive compulsive scale (Y-BOCS)
  3. Yale – Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS)
  4. Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CYBOCS-2)
  5. Y-BOCS Symptom Checklist (Y-BOCS-SC)
  6. Florida Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory (FOCI)
  7. COVID-19-Specific Obsessive Compulsive Symptoms Scale (C19-OCS)
  8. Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory OCI
  9. Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS)
  10. Brown Locus of Control Scale
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