Global Assessment of Functioning

Global assessment of functioning (GAF)

Main reference: Luborsky L: Clinicians' Judgements of Mental Health. Archives of General Psychiatry 7:407–417, 1962; American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition, Text Revision, p34. American Psychiatric Association, Washington DC, 2000.

Type: Global judgment following semi-structured interview.

Main indications: Designed to rate overall psychological, social, and occupational functioning, excluding impairment due to physical or environmental factors.

Rating performed by: Trained health professional.

Time period covered by scale: Clinical condition at the time of the interview.

Time required to complete rating: Not applicable, as the global rating takes place at the end of the diagnostic interview.

Remarks: Included in DSM-IV as the Axis V assessment. Rates the patient on a single score of 1–100 according to an overall assessment of their level of functioning, with the scale divided into ten ranges of functioning; however, intermediate scores can be given when applicable. The score is allocated by starting at the top level and moving down until the patient’s level of functioning is reached. A score of 0 indicates that the assessor considers that insufficient information is available to make a meaningful assessment.