PTSD & ASSESSMENT
JILLIAN FISH, EMILY SHIELDS,
JENNIE GOODWIN & BRIAN RIESTER
DSM-5 CRITERIA
Criterion A: stressor
The person was exposed to: death, threatened death, actual or threatened serious injury, or actual or
threatened sexual violence, as follows: (one required)
1. Direct exposure.
2. Witnessing, in person.
3. Indirectly, by learning that a close relative or close friend was exposed to trauma. If the event
involved actual or threatened death, it must have been violent or accidental.
4. Repeated or extreme indirect exposure to aversive details of the event(s), usually in the course
of professional duties (e.g., first responders, collecting body parts; professionals repeatedly
exposed to details of child abuse). This does not include indirect non-professional exposure
through electronic media, television, movies, or pictures.
Criterion B: intrusion symptoms
The traumatic event is persistently re-experienced in the following way(s): (one required)
1. Recurrent, involuntary, and intrusive memories. Note: Children older than six may express
this symptom in repetitive play.
2. Traumatic nightmares. Note: Children may have frightening dreams without content related
to the trauma(s).
3. Dissociative reactions (e.g., flashbacks) which may occur on a continuum from brief episodes
to complete loss of consciousness. Note: Children may reenact the event in play.
4. Intense or prolonged distress after exposure to traumatic reminders.
5. Marked physiologic reactivity after exposure to trauma-related stimuli.
DSM-5 CRITERIA CONT.
Criterion C: avoidance
Persistent effortful avoidance of distressing trauma-related stimuli after the event: (one
required)
1. Trauma-related thoughts or feelings.
2. Trauma-related external reminders (e.g., people, places, conversations, activities, objects,
or situations).
Criterion D: negative alterations in cognitions and mood
Negative alterations in cognitions and mood that began or worsened after the traumatic event:
(two required)
1. Inability to recall key features of the traumatic event (usually dissociative amnesia; not
due to head injury, alcohol, or drugs).
2. Persistent (and often distorted) negative beliefs and expectations about oneself or the
world (e.g., "I am bad," "The world is completely dangerous").
3. Persistent distorted blame of self or others for causing the traumatic event or for resulting
consequences.
Persistent negative trauma-related emotions (e.g., fear, horror, anger, guilt, or shame).
Markedly diminished interest in (pre-traumatic) significant activities.
Feeling alienated from others (e.g., detachment or estrangement).
Constricted affect: persistent inability to experience positive emotions.
DSM-5 CRITERIA CONT.
Criterion E: alterations in arousal and reactivity
Trauma-related alterations in arousal and reactivity that began or worsened after the
traumatic event: (two required)
1. Irritable or aggressive behavior
2. Self-destructive or reckless behavior
3. Hypervigilance
4. Exaggerated startle response
5. Problems in concentration
6. Sleep disturbance
Criterion F: duration
Persistence of symptoms (in Criteria B, C, D, and E) for more than one month.
Criterion G: functional significance
Significant symptom-related distress or functional impairment (e.g., social, occupational).
Criterion H: exclusion
Disturbance is not due to medication, substance use, or other illness.
Specify if: With dissociative symptoms.
CLINICIAN-ADMINISTERED
PTSD SCALE FOR DSM-5
CAPS-5
ABOUT THE CAPS-5
Clinician Administered PTSD Scale
Semi Structured Interview
Also helps with diagnosing acute stress disorder
Assesses severity and frequency of symptoms, as well as
other factors
• Is a 30 item scale that takes 30-45 minutes
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•
•
•
ABOUT THE CAPS-5 CONT.
• Works well with research as well as diagnosing and
treatment planning
• Assesses the impact of symptoms on social and
occupational aspects of clients life
• Provides means to check the validity of the ratings they
have obtained
• There is a number of different algorithms for scoring
CAPS-5 PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
Reliability
• Test-Retest
• Intraclass correlations ranged from
.86 < r  .87 for frequency
.86 < r  .92 for intensity
.88 < r  .91 for severity
• Across all 17 symptoms, intraclass correlations were .93 for total
frequency, .95 for total intensity, and .95 for total severity.
• Inter-rater
• .92 < k  .99 among the three symptom clusters
• Internal Consistency
• .73 <   .85 among the three symptom clusters
Cadrobbi Pupo, M., Roberto Jorge, M., Ferri Schoedl, A., Affonseca Bressan, R., Baxter Andreoli, S., Feijo Mello,
M., & de Jesus Mari, J. (2011). The accuracy of the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) to
identify PTSD cases in victims of urban violence. Psychiatry Research, 85, 157-160.
Weathers, F. W., Keane, T. M., & Davidson, J. R. T. (2001). Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale: A review of the
first ten years of research. Depression and Anxiety, 13, 132-156.
CAPS-5 PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
Validity
• Convergent
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•
•
•
The Mississippi Scale (r = .70)
The PK Scale of the MMPI-II (r = .84)
The CES (r = .42)
IES Total Score (r = .62)
Structure
• Factor Analysis
• Construct has a four-factor structure
• Re-experiencing, avoidance, numbing, and hyper arousal
Cadrobbi Pupo, M., Roberto Jorge, M., Ferri Schoedl, A., Affonseca Bressan, R., Baxter Andreoli, S., Feijo Mello,
M., & de Jesus Mari, J. (2011). The accuracy of the Clinician-administered PTSD scale (CAPS) to
identify PTSD cases in victims of urban violence. Psychiatry Research, 85, 157-160.
Weathers, F. W., Keane, T. M., & Davidson, J. R. T. (2001). Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale: A review of the
first ten years of research. Depression and Anxiety, 13, 132-156.
MULTICULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS
❖ The CAPS-5 has been used widely with a range of populations and types
of trauma, including victims of crimes, rape, motor vehicle accidents, and
torture (Shalev et. al, 1997; Foa & Tolin, 2000; Schnyder & Moergeli, 2002;
Ost & Paunovic, 2005, as cited in Pupo et. al, 2011).
❖ A 2011 study (Pupo et. al) showed that the CAPS-5 is an accurate and
reliable instrument for detecting PTSD in civilian populations
➢ Population: Brazilian victims of urban violence
➢ High internal consistency - Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.97
➢ Sensitivity = 90% (95% Confidence Interval); Specificity = 95.7% (95% C.I.)
❖ CAPS-5 has been thoroughly tested and researched with veteran and
civilian populations, and numerous trauma populations. Overall, the
research indicates it is a quality measure of PTSD symptoms.
❖ Limitation: CAPS-5 is a lengthy assessment that can take up to an hour to
complete - this may be a barrier for clients who have trouble with attention
span or chronic pain
❖ Has been used to study ethnic differences among female veterans (C’de
Baca, Castillo, & Qualls, 2012).
DAVIDSON TRAUMA SCALE
DTS
ABOUT THE DTS
* Not updated for DSM-5 yet *
• 17-item self-report measure that assesses the 17 DSM-IV
symptoms of PTSD
• Items are rated on
• 5-point frequency (0 = "not at all" to 4 = "every day")
• severity scales (0 = "not at all distressing" to 4 = "extremely distressing")
• Respondents asked to identify the trauma that is most
disturbing to them and to rate, in the past week, how much
trouble they have had with each symptom
ABOUT THE DTS CONT.
• The DTS yields the following:
• frequency score - ranging from 0 to 68
• severity score - ranging from 0 to 68
• total score - ranging from 0 to 136
• Purpose of DTS: preliminary determination about whether the symptoms
meet DSM criteria for PTSD
• Scores can also be calculated for each of the 3 PTSD symptom clusters (i.e.,
B, C, and D).
• Sample Item: Have you had painful images, memories
or thoughts of the event?
• (Respondents rate how much trouble they have had with each symptom)
DTS PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
• Reliability
• Test-Retest
• r = .86
• Internal Consistency
• .97 <   .99
• Validity
• Convergent
• The CAPS (r = .78)
• IES (r = .64)
• Structure
• Factor Analysis
• Construct has been shown to have a four to seven factor structure
Davidson, J. R. T., Book, S. W., Colket, J. T., Tupler, L. A., Roth, S., David, D., … Feldman, M. E. (1997). Assessment of a new self-rating scale
for posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychological Medicine, 27, 153-160.
Davidson, J. R. T., Tharwani, H. M., & Connor, K. M. (2002). Davidson Trauma Scale (DTS): Normative scores in the general population and
effect sizes in placebo-controlled SSRI trials. Depression and Anxiety, 15, 75-78.
McDonald, S. D., Beckham, J. C., Morey, R. A., & Calhoun, P. S. (2009). The validity and diagnostic efficiency of the Davidson Trauma Scale in
military veterans who have served since September 11th, 2001. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 23, 247-255.
MULTICULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS
❖ DTS can successfully differentiate between those with PTSD and
those without PTSD (Davidson, Tharwani, & Connor, 2002).
➢ Although it does have many strengths, including the ability to
track changes and treatment outcomes (Adkins, Weathers,
McDevitt-Murphy, & Daniels, 2008).
➢ Has shown good validity and reliability with different traumaexposed groups (veterans, rape victims, natural disasters, and
mixed trauma exposure), (Davidson, Tharwani, & Connor,
2002).
 More psychometric research should be conducted to help
determine if the DTS is generalizable to different populations,
such as ethnic and racial groups
PTSD SYMPTOM SCALE INTERVIEW
PSS-I
ABOUT THE PSS-I
* Not updated for DSM-5 yet *
• Also a semi structured interview
• Takes about 20 minutes to administer and has 17
questions
• Used to link distress to a trauma
• Also can be used to identify a trauma
• Can be used in reference to the past but is important that
questions reference a 2 week period
• Also takes in account clinicians opinion on severity and
frequency of symptoms
PSS-I PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
• Reliability
• Internal Consistency
• .65 <   .86 among all subscales
• Inter-rater
• .91 < k  .93 on all subscales
• Validity
• Concurrent
• The CAPS-5 and the PSS-I (r = .87)
• Convergent
• The PTSD section of the SCID (r = .73)
Foa, E. B., & Tolin, D. F. (2000). Comparison of the PTSD symptom scale interview version and the clinician-administered PTSD
scale. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 13, 181-191.
MULTICULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS
❖ The PSS-I has been tested with civilian populations and in
comparison with the CAPS-5 (a longer PTSD assessment)
➢ Determined that the PSS-I may be used in place of the CAPS-5
as a diagnostic instrument
➢ Performs equally well as a measure of PTSD (Foa & Tolin,
2000)
➢ Correlates strongly with several other self-report measures for
PTSD, depression, and anxiety (Foa & Yadin, 2011)
❖ PSS-I has been used to evaluate trauma in Rwandan survivors of
the 1994 genocide and former prisoners accused of participating in
the genocide
➢ Culturally sensitive measure
➢ Accurately detects symptomology and identifies specific
events (Reider & Elbert, 2013)
STRUCTURED INTERVIEW
FOR PTSD
SIP
ABOUT THE SIP
* Not updated for DSM-5 yet *
• 19 Item scale
• Takes 20-30 minutes to administer
• Can be administered by mental health professionals or
by paraprofessionals after some training
• Includes two items correlated to trauma related guilt
• Each item is answered on a 0-4 rating scale making the
highest possible score 76
• Responses can be used to make a determination about
whether client's symptoms meet DSM criteria B, C, and
D for PTSD
SIP PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
• Reliability
• Internal Consistency
•  = .80
• Test-Retest
• r = .89
• Inter-rater
• k = .90
Davidson, J. R. T., Malik, M. A., & Travers, J. (1997). Structured interview for PTSD (SIP): Psychometric
validation for DSM-IV criteria. Depression and Anxiety, 5, 127-129.
SIP PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
• Validity
• Concurrent
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DTS (r = .67)
IES (r = .49)
Hamilton Depression Scale (r = .42)
Hamilton Anxiety Scale (r = .48)
Disability measures (r = .25 - .33)
• Structure
• Factor Analysis
• Construct has a seven factor structure
• Recurrent intrusive recollections, phasic hyper arousal, flashbacks,
psychogenic amnesia, lack of sleep, lack of startle, and presence of
irritability.
Davidson, J. R. T., Malik, M. A., & Travers, J. (1997). Structured interview for PTSD (SIP): Psychometric
validation for DSM-IV criteria. Depression and Anxiety, 5, 127-129.
MULTICULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS
❖ Research has shown that the SIP has the ability to detect
differences in treatment effect and distinguish between
those with PTSD and those without (Davidson, Malik &
Travers, 1997)
❖ Civilian and combat veteran populations
➢ Is sensitive to the numerous types of trauma an
individual might experience (Foa & Yadin, 2011)
PTSD CHECKLIST FOR DSM-5
PCL-5
ABOUT THE PCL-5
• The PCL-5 is a 20-item self-report measure that assesses the 20
DSM-5 symptoms of PTSD.
• Purposes of the PCL-5 include:
• Monitoring symptom change during and after treatment
• Screening individuals for PTSD
• Making a provisional PTSD diagnosis
• The PCL-5 can be scored to provide a provisional PTSD diagnosis,
given before the CAPS-5.
• Administered in one of three formats:
• Without Criterion A (stressor)  appropriate when trauma exposure is measured
by some other method
• With a brief Criterion A assessment
• With the revised Life Events Checklist for DSM-5 (LEC-5) and extended Criterion
A assessment
ABOUT THE PCL-5 CONT.
• Can be completed in waiting room prior to a session or by
participants as part of a research study
• Approximately 5-10 minutes to complete
• Interpretation should be made by a clinician
• The PCL-5 can be scored in several ways including:
• A total symptom severity score, range of 0-80  summing the scores for
item
• DSM-5 symptom cluster severity scores  summing the scores for the
items within a given cluster
• Cluster B (items 1-5) / Cluster C (items 6-7) / Cluster D (items 8-14) / Cluster E
(items 15-20)
• A provisional PTSD diagnosis  treat each item rated as 2 =
"Moderately" or higher as a symptom endorsed, then following the DSM5 diagnostic rule which requires at least: 1 B item (questions 1-5), 1 C item
(questions 6-7), 2 D items (questions 8-14), 2 E items (questions 15-20)
IMPORTANT REVISIONS FROM
DSM-IV PCL TO PCL-5
• PCL for DSM-IV has three versions:
• PCL-M (military), PCL-C (civilian), and PCL-S (specific)
• PCL-5 is most similar to the PCL-S (specific) version. There are no
corresponding PCL-M or PCL-C versions of PCL-5
• Three formats of the PCL-5 measure; one without a Criterion
A component, one with a Criterion A component, and one
with the LEC-5 and extended Criterion A component
• The wording of PCL-5 items reflects both changes to existing
symptoms and the addition of new symptoms in DSM-5
• Rating scale went from 1-5 in the DSM-IV to 0-4 for each
symptom. Descriptors remain the same.
• Due to the changes, PCL-5 scores are not compatible with
PCL for DSM-IV scores and cannot be used interchangeably
PCL PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
Military Version
• Reliability
• Test-Retest
• r > .70
• Internal Consistency
• .75 <   .80
• Validity
• Convergent
• The PTSD section of the SCID (r = .64)
• Structure
• Factor Analysis
• Construct has been shown to have a two factor and four factor structure
Ruggiero, K. J., Del Ben, K., Scotti, J. R., & Rabalais, A. E. (2003). Psychometric properties of the PTSD checklist - civilian version.
Journal of Traumatic Stress, 16, 495- 502.
Wilkins, K. C., Lang, A. J., & Norman, S. B. (2011). Synthesis of the psychometric properties of the PTSD checklist (PCL) military,
civilian, and specific versions. Depression and Anxiety, 28, 596-606.
PCL PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES
Civilians
• Reliability
• Test-Retest
• .80 > r  .70
• Internal Consistency
•  > .75
• Validity
• Convergent
• The CAPS (r = .79)
• The Mississippi (r = .90)
• Structure
• Factor Analysis
• Construct has a four factor structure
Ruggiero, K. J., Del Ben, K., Scotti, J. R., & Rabalais, A. E. (2003). Psychometric properties of the PTSD checklist - civilian version.
Journal of Traumatic Stress, 16, 495- 502.
Wilkins, K. C., Lang, A. J., & Norman, S. B. (2011). Synthesis of the psychometric properties of the PTSD checklist (PCL) military,
civilian, and specific versions. Depression and Anxiety, 28, 596-606.
MULTICULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS
❖ Widely adopted and extensively evaluated with numerous trauma
populations
❖ Used by the Veterans Administration
❖ Has been evaluated as a quality measure for diagnosing PTSD in collegeage individuals (Adkins, Weathers, McDevitt-Murphy, & Daniels, 2008)
➢ Caucasian, African American, and “Other” racial groups
❖ Limitations
➢ Some studies suggest that the reading level of the PCL may impede
individuals’ ability to complete the assessment accurately (Wilkins et.
al, 2011)
➢ Those with less education, intellectual deficits, TBI, or whose first
language is not English may struggle with the vocabulary and
wording
➢ Additional research with female populations (military, veteran, and
civilian) is necessary (Wilkins et. al, 2011)
REFERENCES:
Adkins, J. W., Weathers, F. W., McDevitt-Murphy, M., & Daniels, J. B. (2008). Psychometric properties of seven self-report
measures of posttraumatic stress disorder in college students with mixed civilian trauma exposure. Journal of
Anxiety Disorders, 22(8), 1393-1402. doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2008.02.002
Blake, D., Weathers, F., Nagy, L., Kaloupek, D., Klauminzer, D., Chamey, D., ... Buckley, T. C. (2000). Instruction manual
clinician-administered PTSD scale. National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
C'de Baca, J., Castillo, D., & Qualls, C. (2012). Ethnic differences in symptoms among female veterans diagnosed with PTSD.
Journal of Traumatic Stress, 25(3), 353-357. doi:10.1002/jts.21709
Davidson, J. R. T., Book, S. W., Colket, J. T., Tupler, L. A., Roth, S., David, D., … Feldman, M. E. (1997). Assessment of a new
self-rating scale for posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychological Medicine, 27, 153-160.
Davidson, J. R. T., Tharwani, H. M., & Connor, K. M. (2002). Davidson Trauma Scale (DTS): Normative scores in the general
population and effect sizes in placebo-controlled SSRI trials. Depression and Anxiety, 15, 75-78.
Davidson, J. R. T., Malik, M. A., & Travers, J. (1997). Structured interview for PTSD (SIP): Psychometric validation for
IV criteria. Depression and Anxiety, 5, 127-129.
DSM-
Engelhard, I. M., Arntz, A., & Van den Hout, M. A. (2007). Low specificity of symptoms on the post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) symptom scale: A comparison of individuals with PTSD, individuals with other anxiety disorders and
individuals without psychopathology. British Journal Of Clinical Psychology, 46(4), 449-456.
doi:10.1348/014466507X206883
Feeny, N. C., & Foa, E. (2002). Manual for the administration and scoring of the PTSD symptom scale-interview. PSS-I Manual.
REFERENCES:
Foa, E. B., & Tolin, D. F. (2000). Comparison of the PTSD symptom scale interview version and the clinicianadministered PTSD scale. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 13, 181-191.
Foa, E.B., & Yadin, E. (2011). Assessment and diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder: An overview of measures.
Psychiatric Times, 28(7), 63. Retrieved from http://pro.psychcentral.com/2012/assessment-and-diagnosis-ofposttraumatic-stress-disorder/00724.html#
McDonald, S. D., Beckham, J. C., Morey, R. A., & Calhoun, P. S. (2009). The validity and diagnostic efficiency of the
Davidson Trauma Scale in military veterans who have served since September 11th, 2001. Journal of Anxiety
Disorders, 23, 247-255.
Pupo, M., Jorge, M., Schoedl, A., Bressan, R., Andreoli, S., Mello, M., & Mari, J. (2011). The accuracy of the clinicianadministered PTSD scale (CAPS) to identify PTSD cases in victims of urban violence. Psychiatry
Research, 185(1/2), 157-160. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2009.11.006
Rieder, H., & Elbert, T. (2013). Rwanda - lasting imprints of a genocide: trauma, mental health and psychosocial
conditions in survivors, former prisoners and their children. Conflict & Health, 7(1), 1-13. doi:10.1186/17521505-7-6
Ruggiero, K. J., Del Ben, K., Scotti, J. R., & Rabalais, A. E. (2003). Psychometric properties of the PTSD checklist - civilian
version. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 16, 495- 502.
Schnurr, P. P. (n.d.). PTSD: National center for PTSD. Retrieved from http://www.ptsd.va.gov
Weathers, F. W., Keane, T. M., & Davidson, J. R. T. (2001). Clinician-administered PTSD Scale: A review of the first ten
years of research. Depression and Anxiety, 13, 132-156.
Wilkins, K. C., Lang, A. J., & Norman, S. B. (2011). Synthesis of the psychometric properties of the PTSD Checklist (PCL)
military, civilian, and specific versions. Depression and Anxiety, 28, 596-606.