Literature suggests that clinical depression is a major public health problem.
Latinos are significantly at high risk for depression and in need of culturally-responsive mental health services. Conventional self-report depression assessment methods display limited predictive power. Most importantly, computerized speech recognition promises to enhance the early and accurate detection of depressed mood and symptoms. The bilingual computer programs were evaluated for psychometric properties and the relationship of depression levels to demographics, acculturation, and speech behavior. The English and Spanish-speaking samples positively rated the automated interviews.