Abstract
The Skin Picking Scale-Revised (SPS-R) is an 8-item self-report measure of skin picking behaviors. It includes two subscales related to skin picking symptom severity and picking-related impairments. The study aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the Polish version of the SPS-R in a sample of adults reporting skin picking. The sample of 764 participants was recruited from the general population through an online survey. Among them, 159 meet the criteria of pathological skin picking applied in the original SPS-R validation study, and 57 endorsed all of the DSM-5 criteria for excoriation disorder. The SPS-R was back-translated into Polish. Factor structure, reliability, convergent and divergent validity, and diagnostic accuracy were assessed. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed a two-factor structure of the scale. High internal consistency and convergent and divergent validity were confirmed for the total score as well as for the subscales. High prognostic ability of the SPS-R total score was also demonstrated using ROC analysis: ≥5 was accepted as an optimal cut-off point for distinguishing skin picking sufferers from healthy controls. The Polish version of the SPS-R shows good psychometric properties and appears to be a reliable measure of skin picking symptoms and picking-related impairment.
Highlights
Pathological skin-picking is a chronic condition whose prevalence in the community is estimated to be surprisingly high
We aimed to develop a Polish version of the Skin Picking ScaleRevised (SPD-R) and evaluate its psychometric properties
A total of 159 of them (88.7% women, 9.4% men, 1.9% not reported) aged 18–54 (M = 23.58, SD = 6.29) endorsed meeting the criteria for pathological skin picking applied in the original Skin Picking Scale-Revised (SPS-R) validation study [11]: (1) current skin picking resulting in tissue damage; (2) at least mild impairment due to picking; (3) skin picking behavior is not accounted for by the use of drugs, dermatological disease, or psychiatric diseases
Summary
Pathological skin-picking is a chronic condition whose prevalence in the community is estimated to be surprisingly high. 1–5% of the general population [1,2], its subclinical forms are reported in 60%. Skin picking has recently gained more attention due to the introduction of explicit diagnostic criteria of skin picking disorder (SPD) in the Fifth Edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) [7]. According to DSM-5, skin picking (excoriation) disorder is diagnosed by the presence of the following features: recurrent skin picking resulting in skin lesions; repeated attempts to decrease or stop picking; clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning caused by picking; absence of another mental or medical condition which may better explain the symptoms.
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