Reliability and validity of a Swedish version of the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES-II)

Abstract

The aim was to investigate the psychometric properties, i.e. reliability (internal consistency) and validity (factor structure and relationships with other scales) of the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES) in a random sample from the Swedish population. Six hundred subjects between 18 and 59 years of age were randomly sampled from the population of a catchment area in a suburb of Stockholm and 181 patients with a range of post-traumatic disorders were included. A second-order analysis revealed two components, which reflected normal and pathological dissociation, and could readily be summed into one scale. The internal consistency was high (Cronbach's alpha=0.87). High scorers in the DES had more fearful attachment, more interpersonal problems, more severe symptoms and lower sense of coherence. A subgroup of patients with significant dissociation was identified. The psychometric properties are sufficient for use of the DES as a screening instrument for dissociative symptoms.