1. The validity and reliability of the German version of the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ-20).
- Author
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Mueller-Pfeiffer C, Schumacher S, Martin-Soelch C, Pazhenkottil AP, Wirtz G, Fuhrhans C, Hindermann E, Assaloni H, Briner DP, and Rufer M
- Subjects
- Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Child Abuse psychology, Comorbidity, Dissociative Disorders psychology, Female, Germany, Humans, Life Change Events, Male, Mental Disorders diagnosis, Mental Disorders psychology, Middle Aged, Psychometrics statistics & numerical data, Reproducibility of Results, Somatoform Disorders psychology, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic diagnosis, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic psychology, Switzerland, Translating, Young Adult, Cross-Cultural Comparison, Dissociative Disorders diagnosis, Personality Inventory statistics & numerical data, Somatoform Disorders diagnosis, Surveys and Questionnaires
- Abstract
The present study investigated the validity of the German version of the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ-20), a scale designed to measure somatoform dissociative symptoms. Somatoform dissociation involves physical manifestations of a dissociation of the personality and is considered a unique entity in the phenomenological spectrum of dissociation. The validity and reliability of the German version of the SDQ-20 was examined using a sample of 225 patients with (n = 39) and without dissociative disorders who were recruited from several in- and outpatient psychiatric clinics. Patients were assessed using structured diagnostic interviews; diagnostic checklists; and self-rating scales for dissociation, and posttraumatic stress. Patients with dissociative disorders reported significantly more (p < .001) somatoform dissociative symptoms than patients without dissociative disorders (criterion validity). Significant correlations (p < .001) were found between scores of somatoform dissociation, psychoform dissociation, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and traumatic childhood experiences (construct validity). Reliability was corroborated by a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of .91 and a test-retest correlation of .89. A component factor analysis suggested unidimensionality of the SDQ-20. In conclusion, the psychometric properties and cross-cultural validity of the German version of the SDQ-20 are excellent. Our results form the basis for the further study of somatoform dissociation in German-speaking populations.
- Published
- 2010
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