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The article describes symptom-specific scales commonly referenced by practitioners who prescribe psychotropic medications to youths presenting with psychiatric conditions. The Children's Depression Rating Scale-Revised is cited as the most commonly utilized scale for measuring depression severity in clinical trials of psychotropic medications. For generalized anxiety, the Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale is commonly used. The Young Mania Rating Scale is used when dealing with bipolar disorder.

The article describes important psychometric properties of psychiatric rating scales. It discusses the three scales such as the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA), the Behavior Assessment System for Children--Second Edition (BASC-2) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). It also compares the ASEBA and the BASC-2.

The article discusses the use of rating scales in child and adolescent psychiatry clinical practice. The use the right rating scale in the practice can reportedly help bypass visit-to-visit variability in information ascertainment inherent in unstructured interview. Rating scales, the author notes, may help streamline the clinical evaluation process of patients when used correctly. The scores from the rating scales can be compared from baseline to multiple time points throughout treatment to monitor the effectiveness of treatment.