Self-report Measures Of Psychopathology Research Articles

Relationship of purported measures of pathological and nonpathological dissociation to self-reported psychological distress and fantasy immersion.

In order to investigate both the psychometric structure of the Dissociative Experiences Survey (DES) and the discriminant validity of the DES-Taxon (Waller, Putnam, & Carlson, 1996) as a specific marker of pathological dissociation, 376 non-clinical community based respondents completed the DES and a battery of psychopathology and imaginative involvement self-report measures. The DES was scored for both the Taxon and the DES-Absorption subscale. A DES subscale purported to tap normative dissociative processes. The two DES subscales demonstrated substantial overlap, both with each other (r = .80) and with the self-report measures with both DES scales comparably associated with high levels of psychological distress. Both DES subscales were also associated with elevated levels of "normative" imaginative involvement (fantasy proneness, absorption, daydreaming immersion). We conclude that both DES scales are largely indistinguishable from each other in relation to other self-report measures of psychopathology and fantasy access.

Further reliability, convergent and discriminant validity of overall defensive functioning.

The reliability, convergent and discriminant validity of the Defensive Functioning Scale (DFS) and the overall defensive functioning score (ODF) has been previously examined. This study aims to address gaps in the literature as well as to replicate and extend the initial positive clinical validity data emerging on the DFS ( Blais et al., 1996; Hoglend and Perry, 1998; Lingiardi et al., 1999; Perry 2001; Perry and Hoglend, 1998; Perry et al., 1998). Fifty-three outpatient clients were rated by clinicians trained on the DFS. The relationship between the ODF with both clinician-rated and self-report measures of psychopathology was examined. The mean interrater reliability for the DFS levels rated in this study was found to be moderate to high, and reliability for the ODF score was found to be excellent. Coefficient alpha of individual defense levels as well as across the entire DFS indicated high levels of internal consistency. Factor analysis revealed that the ODF represents a construct different from various aspects of patient self-report and clinician ratings of psychopathology. These results provide further support for the clinical application and relevance of the DFS system.

Incremental Validity of the MMPI-A Content Scales in the Prediction of Self-Reported Symptoms

The incremental contribution of the MMPI-A (Butcher et al., 1992) content scales to the prediction of scores on self-report measures of psychopathology was examined in a sample of 62 adolescents in inpatient treatment and 59 adolescents from the community. All participants completed the MMPI-A and a battery of criterion measures. A series of hierarchical regression analyses was conducted in which the MMPI-A clinical and content scales served as the independent variables and the criterion measures as the dependent variables. The content scales were found to have incremental validity beyond the clinical scales in predicting variance in the criterion measures. Similarly, the clinical scales also demonstrated incremental validity over the content scales in making these predictions. Both sets of scales made independent contributions to the prediction of sample membership (clinical vs. nonclinical). Findings suggest that both the clinical and content scales of the MMPI-A make significant contributions to the assessment of adolescents' psychological functioning.

The Capacity for Dynamic Process Scale: An Examination of Reliability, Validity, and Relation to Therapeutic Alliance

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Capacity for Dynamic Process Scale (CDPS; Thackrey, Butler, & Strupp, 1993) as well as the relationship of this scale to therapeutic alliance and termination in an outpatient sample. The sample consisted of 38 outpatients who were admitted over a 22-month period at a university-based community psychological clinic. The results of this study indicated that the CDPS can be reliably scored and is internally consistent. In addition, the CDPS showed discriminant validity based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (fourth edition; DSM-IV American Psychiatric Association, 1994) scales of functioning and other self-report measures of psychopathology. The CDPS was also significantly related to clinician-rated therapeutic alliance during evaluation and could be used effectively to differentiate between those patients who terminated psychotherapy and those who continued treatment. These results support the reliability and validity of the CDPS in relation to the engagement of patients in outpatient psychodynamic psychotherapy.

The relationship of neo-pi performance to coping styles, patterns of use, and triggers for use among substance abusers

We investigated the construct validity of the NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) with a clinical population of 2,676 substance abusers. Scores on the NEO-PI were correlated with self-report measures of psychopathology as well as patterns of substance abuse, reported coping styles, relapse triggers, and relapse confidence. Substance abusers were more Neurotic and less Agreeable and Conscientious than were the NEO-PI nonclinical normative sample. Within subgroups of substance users, cocaine-only users were more Extroverted and Open than were alcohol-only users. Polysubstance users were the least Agreeable and Conscientious group. Alcohol-only users and polysubstance users scored higher on Neuroticism than did other groups. Personality dimensions related to reported coping styles in meaningful ways. For example, Neuroticism was highly related to escape avoidant coping ( r = .53), Agreeableness was negatively related to confrontive coping ( r = −.28), and Conscientiousness was related to problem solving ( r = −.27) and negatively related to escape avoidance ( r = −.29). Neuroticism, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Extroversion were associated with reported triggers of use including negative emotional states, social rejection, and tension. Higher levels of Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Extroversion were associated with greater confidence in ability to refrain from use, whereas Neuroticism was associated with a corresponding lack of confidence in self-restraint.

Military Family Adaptation to United Nations Operations in Somalia

In this first known investigation of family responses to the absence of the active duty sponsor deployed to Somalia, 16 adults and 12 children repeatedly completed self-report measures of psychopathology and parenting attitudes. Stay-home parents registered more distress than their deployed spouses. Levels of parental intimacy varied significantly over time, reaching its lowest point near the end of the mission. Future humanitarian mission deployment support programs may need to more effectively address issues of parenting and spousal stress if future research confirms our findings.

Cognitive functioning, weight change and therapy in anorexia nervosa

Anorexia nervosa is associated with impairments in cognitive function which have been hypothesized to be fundamentally attentional in nature. The current study investigated whether therapy and weight gain affect these impairments. A group of anorexics (N = 12) completed a battery of cognitive performance tasks and self-report measures of psychopathology on three occasions, over the course of 12 weeks of in-patient treatment. A non-clinical control population (N = 17) completed the same measures. The anorexics improved on all measures of psychopathology and affective state as a result of therapy. Anorexics displayed poorer recall, reaction times, and motor speed than the control subjects. Although there was a gain in weight over the course of therapy, there was no corresponding improvement in cognitive performance. Impaired task performance in anorexics was not directly related to their psychopathology or affective state.

A brief self-rating scale for PTSD after road vehicle accident

The Accident Fear Questionnaire (AFQ) is a new self-rated scale for PTSD and “accident phobia” (subsyndromal PTSD) after road vehicle accident (RVA). AFQ data from 54 RVA survivors were compared with two clinician-rated and three self-report measures of psychopathology. Diagnoses were based on the DSM-III-R structured clinical interview for PTSD and on DSM-III-R criteria for specific phobia. Diagnostic groups were similar in regards to demographic variables, duration of illness, measures of pain, self-rated physical impairment, and duration of illness. The AFQ had good internal consistency with a Crohnbach's alpha of 0.89 and yielded the largest group differences between PTSD ( n = 12), “accident phobia” ( n = 14), and neither diagnosis ( n = 28). Subjects with PTSD tended to score highest on all self-report measures of psychopathology, followed by “accident phobics”, followed by subjects with neither diagnosis. On the AFQ, this order of severity was preserved after subjects with major depression had been removed from the analysis. Lacking effects from depression and from pain suggest that the AFQ is a specific measure of RVA-related phobic avoidance.

Associations Among the MCMI-II Clinical Syndrome Scales and the MMPI-2 Clinical Scales

The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory—II (MCMI-II), a frequently used self-report measure of psychopathology, contains nine scales designed to assess Axis I psychopathology (the clinical syndrome and severe syndrome scales). This study explored the relationships among these nine MCMI-II clinical syndrome scales and the clinical scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 (MMPI-2). A sample of 108 psychiatric inpatients was administered both the MCMI-II and the MMPI-2 within 7 days of admission. Pearson correlation coefficients and principal component factors were obtained for the MCMI-II and MMPI-2 scales. The results provided support for the convergent validity of all the MCMI-II Axis I scales. However, the majority of the MCMI-II scales failed to demonstrate adequate discriminant validity in relation to the MMPI-2 scales. The principal component analysis revealed that method variance was the principal influence in determining factor loadings for the majority of test scales. This finding suggests that these two popular self-report tests differ substantially in how they measure psychopathology.

An exploration of shame measures—II: psychopathology

The relationship between shame measures, in particular the Other As Shamer Scale (OAS), and self-report measures of psychopathology was explored in a non-clinical population. Results indicate that beliefs about negative evaluations by others is associated with measures of clinical relevance. Additionally, shame scales which tap into global negative beliefs, including the OAS, are more strongly associated with measures of psychopathology than scales which focus on shame responses to specific events.

Psychopathology correlates of binge eating and binge eating disorder.

The present study examined the psychopathology associated with binge eating disorder (BED), a new diagnostic category proposed for DSM-IV to classify patients with significant binge eating problems in the absence of purging. Self-report measures of psychopathology (e.g., depression, anxiety) and body image disturbance were administered to 72 women who prospectively (1) met criteria for BED (DSM-IV criteria), (2) reported frequent bingeing but did not meet BED criteria, and (3) denied problems with eating. Subjects satisfying BED criteria reported higher levels of psychopathology than normals on all measures and subclinical binge eaters scored between these two groups, but they were closer to subjects without eating problems. The pattern of results was essentially unchanged when corrected for weight. BED subjects and subclinical binge eaters were less satisfied with their bodies than were normal controls. These findings suggest that BED is not only characterized by frequent bingeing, but more importantly is associated with elevated psychopathology. Overall, these results lend support to the diagnostic criteria proposed for BED.

Utility of the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire—Revised in A Nonclinical Population

Although the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire—Revised (PDQ-R) has proved useful as a global measure of Axis II symptomatology in clinical (i.e., psychiatric inpatient or outpatient) subjects, the utility of the PDQ-R in nonclinical populations remains unexplored. The present study examined the utility of the PDQ-R in a nonclinical college student sample. Results indicated: (1) that a high proportion of subjects in our sample were assigned personality disorder diagnoses via the PDQ-R, even after the well-documented tendency of the PDQ-R to yield false-positive diagnoses was taken into account; (2) that, as expected, nonclinical subjects who score above the clinical threshold on the PDQ-R composite index show elevated scores on the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (SCL-90), a self-report measure of psychopathology; and (3) that nonclinical subjects who score above the clinical threshold on the PDQ-R composite index obtain SCL-90 scores comparable to those obtained in clinical (outpatient) samples. If the clinical cutoff scores typically used for the PDQ-R were modified to reduce the number of subjects that may be mislabeled as having significant Axis II personality disorder symptomatology, the PDQ-R could be useful as a screening instrument in nonclinical as well as clinical subject populations.

The Factor Structure of SCL-90 and MCMI Scale Scores: Within-Measure and Interbattery Analyses.

This article reports scale-level factor analyses for two widely used self-report measures of psychopathology - the Symptom Checklist-90-R (Derogatis, 1983) and the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (Millon, 1983) - and compares the obtained factor structures with findings reported in the literature to determine whether each instrument possesses a reliable, meaningful dimensional structure underlying its scale scores. The sample was a heterogeneous group of psychiatric inpatients and outpatients (N = 130). The SCL-90 scale scores formed two highly correlated factors (anxious depression andparanoid thinking), although the scale intercorrelations could be adequately accounted for by a single factor (as in previous reports). The MCMI scale scores formed three factors (anxiousdepression and emotionality, paranoid and manic thinking, and schizoid thinking), of which the first and second were also highly intercorrelated. Supplementary analyses indicated that to a considerable degree the MCMI factor invariance was an artifact of item overlap among the scales. An interbattery factor analysis was then performed to determine whether any common factors could describe the variance shared among the two instruments' subscales. Two interbattery factors were obtained, representing anxious depression and emotionality and paranoid thinking respectively. The two measures, when used separately, appear to offer only limited interpretability of scale profiles, although their combined use appears to permit differentiation between two major symptom configurations.

Relative efficacy of differential response latencies for detecting faking on a self-report measure of psychopathology.

The authors investigated whether differential response latencies for items on a structured self-report test of psychopathology could be used to detect faking in a sample of maximum security prison inmates. Test item response times were statistically adjusted to reflect item latencies in relation both to the person and to the item ; discriminant function analysis indicated that such times could significantly differentiate among standard responding, faking good responses, and faking bad responses. Furthermore, classification hit rates with differential response latencies compared favorably with those rates found with more traditional response dissimulation scales. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed

The role of psychological factors in the report of building-related symptoms in sick building syndrome.

Sick building syndrome (SBS) is an increasingly common problem, although continued skepticism exists regarding its validity. Because of this, the attribution of complaints to psychogenic causes or mas hysteria persists. In this study (N = 111), self-report measures of psychopathology (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory [Hathaway & McKinley, 1983] and SCL-90-R [Derogatis, 1983]) and physical symptom reports failed to discriminate symptomatic from nonsymptomatic workers in an affected building but could more generally differentiate workers in the target building from control subjects. These results suggest that SBS cannot be justifiably attributed to psychological factors alone, although working in a contaminated environment appeared to have deleterious psychological consequences for some workers. Smoking history (in pack/years [packs per day x number of years smoked]) was reliably associated with the development of symptoms in exposed workers. Issues related to the assessment of psychological complaints in SBS are discussed.

The role of psychological factors in the report of building-related symptoms in sick building syndrome.

Sick building syndrome (SBS) is an increasingly common problem, although continued skepticism exists regarding its validity. Because of this, the attribution of complaints to psychogenic causes or mas hysteria persists. In this study (N = 111), self-report measures of psychopathology (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory [Hathaway & McKinley, 1983] and SCL-90-R [Derogatis, 1983]) and physical symptom reports failed to discriminate symptomatic from nonsymptomatic workers in an affected building but could more generally differentiate workers in the target building from control subjects. These results suggest that SBS cannot be justifiably attributed to psychological factors alone, although working in a contaminated environment appeared to have deleterious psychological consequences for some workers. Smoking history (in pack/years [packs per day x number of years smoked]) was reliably associated with the development of symptoms in exposed workers. Issues related to the assessment of psychological complaints in SBS are discussed.

Relative efficacy of differential response latencies for detecting faking on a self-report measure of psychopathology.

Relative efficacy of differential response latencies for detecting faking on a self-report measure of psychopathology.

Multigenerational Occurrence of Survivor Syndrome Symptoms in Families of Holocaust Survivors

The purpose of this study was to determine possible transmission of psychopathology from Jewish holocaust survivors to their children and grandchildren. The Mini-Mult, Death Anxiety Scale, Louisville Behavior Checklist, and School Behavior Checklist were employed. The adult children of holocaust survivors obtained significantly higher scores on self-report measures of psychopathology than control Jewish participants. The grandchildren received significantly higher psychopathology ratings from their patients and teachers. Multigenerational transmission was inferred from the findings.

The relationship between panic attacks and chemical dependencies

The purposes of the present study were to (a) determine the prevalence and characteristics of panic attacks in an alcohol/drug abuse inpatient population, (b) compare patients who reported experiencing panic attacks to patients who have never experienced a panic attack on various self-report measures of psychopathology and on ratings completed by Caregivers, and (c) to examine differences within groups of panickers. One hundred forty-four patients completed the questionnaires over a 17 week period. Over 50% of the patients reported experiencing one or more attacks in the three weeks priorto testing. These panickers scored higher than non-panickers on various measures of psychopathology. Over 83% of panickers reported using alcohol to self-medicate their panic attacks with almost 72% of them believing this procedure to be effective for preventing or reducing panic attacks. Male panickers differed from female panickers on several measures as did panickers who reported their panic attacks began before the alcohol abuse compared to those who did not believe this. The mean history of panic attacks was 103.4 months while the mean history of alcohol abuse was 134.6 months.

Correlational relationships between self-statements and affective states

The current study examined the correlational relationship between specific cognitions and affective states in normal individuals. A research inventory composed of five hypothetical situations and a series of self-report measures of psychopathology was administered to 224 undergraduates. Participants responded to the inventory by rating the situational characteristicness of specific self-statements and affects. An additional 212 participants completed only an observer version of the inventory. Specific self-statements were found to be highly correlated with corresponding affective states in both the actor and observer inventory conditions. Specific irrational self-statements were also significantly related to noncorresponding dysphoric affects, while a negative relationship was obtained between rational cognitions and dysphoric affects. The magnitude of these relationships was significantly greater for low cross-situationally consistent individuals. Multiple-regression analyses indicated that although specific irrational self-statements and affects were only moderately correlated with corresponding self-report measures of psychopathology, the relationship between specific self-statements and affects with respect to the measures was an interactional one. The methodological features of the study and the implications of the findings are discussed.