The Affective Control Scale: Factor structure and associations with posttraumatic stress symptoms in trauma-exposed male veterans.

Abstract

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by broad-based difficulties with emotion. However, the extent to which the disorder is associated with fear of particular emotions remains less well understood. The Affective Control Scale (ACS) is a frequently used measure of fear of emotion, but relatively little work has been done to validate this measure, particularly for use in psychiatric research. This study examined the ACS's factor structure and its associations with PTSD symptoms among trauma-exposed male veterans. Participants (N = 347) completed online assessments, including the ACS and the PTSD Checklist for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5). The data supported a bifactor structure with 1 general fear of emotion factor and 4 specific fear of emotion factors (i.e., fear of anger, fear of positive affect, fear of depressed mood, and fear of anxiety). Fear of emotion was positively associated with all 4 DSM-5 PTSD symptom clusters. After controlling for general fear of emotion, fear of particular emotion states was associated with some specific PTSD symptoms. Both general and specific fears of emotion were associated with specific PTSD symptoms in trauma-exposed veterans. Despite this, results support the use of a modified ACS total score, capturing general fear of emotion, rather than the subscale scores, capturing fear of specific emotions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).