Psychometric Evaluation of a Measure of Posttraumatic Safety Behaviors

Abstract

Despite evidence that safety behaviors function as transdiagnostic causal maintenance factors for anxiety pathology, there has been relatively less empirical investigation of trauma-related safety behaviors in the development and maintenance of posttraumatic stress disorder. This paper introduces the development and preliminary psychometric evaluation of the Posttraumatic Safety Behaviors Inventory (PSBI), a 10-item self-report assessment of trauma-relevant safety behaviors. Two samples totaling 597 trauma survivors (61.8% female; Mage = 40.0; 76.2% White/Caucasian) recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk completed the PSBI. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses identified a three-factor structure consisting of Avoidance, Coping with Negative Thoughts and Emotions, and Coping with Threats to Physical Safety. The PSBI also demonstrated favorable measurement invariance, construct validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. Taken together, our preliminary findings suggest that the PSBI is an efficient, psychometrically sound assessment tool for posttraumatic safety behaviors. With further psychometric validation, the PSBI promises to aid researchers and clinicians in the identification and monitoring of trauma-relevant safety behaviors.