The severity of psychiatric disorder: a replication.

A prior report documented the importance of diagnosis and psychotic symptoms as components of a global rating of severity of psychiatric disorder. The availability of 2-year followup data on 174 (80%) of the original 217 patients permits examination of the stability of components of a global rating. Menninger Health-Sickness Rating Scale (MHRS) scores again correlated with diagnosis and with psychotic symptoms; unlike the initial report, followup MHRS ratings were closely associated with a depression-neurosis factor and social role performance. Age, race, and sex were independent of severity, while low socioeconomic status correlated with severity of illness.