Validation of the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure Insight Scale

Abstract

In this cross-sectional study, we compare the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure (SWAP) Insight Scale scores in three groups of psychoanalytic patients. Psychoanalysts completed the SWAP to describe a real patient at the beginning of analysis, a real patient at the end of analysis, or a hypothetical ideal patient at the end of a successful analysis. The SWAP Insight Scale scores were lowest for the patients at the beginning of analysis and highest for the hypothetical patients at the ideal end of analysis. Further, the correlations between the SWAP Insight Scale and Global Assessment of Functioning scores were not significant at the beginning of analysis and were significant at the end of analysis. The data provide support for the known groups and convergent validity of the SWAP Insight Scale.