Exploratory factor analysis of two measures of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in a non-clinical sample of college students.
This study investigated the psychometric structure of two widely utilized measures of posttraumatic symptoms in a primarily Caucasian non-clinical sample. Given the prevalence of trauma exposure in non-referred samples, measurement of resulting symptoms is a critical issue. Exploratory factor analysis was utilized to assess and compare the factor structure of the Impact of Event Scale [IES; Horowitz, M., Wilner, N., & Alvarez, W. (1979). Impact of Event Scale: a measure of subjective stress. Psychosomatic Medicine, 41, 209-218] and the Mississippi Scale for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Civilian version [MIS-Civ; Vreven, D. L., Gudanowski, D. M., King, L. A., & King, D. W. (1995). The Civilian Version of the Mississippi PTSD Scale-a psychometric evaluation. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 8, 91-109] in a sample of college students reporting exposure to potentially traumatic events. The psychometric structure of the IES was largely consistent with the two-factor structure widely reported in the literature, while the structure of the MIS-Civ varied considerably in this sample. Notably, non-clinical samples tended to report fewer social and occupational dysfunction than clinical samples predominantly utilized in PTSD research. Implications for use of these instruments in screening samples are discussed.
Thatcher
Dawn L
DL
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, 3811, O'Hara St., Oxford Bldg. 800, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. lindsaydl@msx.upmc.edu
Krikorian
Robert
R
D000328:Adult; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities