Skip to main content

Development and psychometric validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for children and adults.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Blackwell, CK; Sherlock, P; Jackson, KL; Hofheimer, JA; Cella, D; Algermissen, MA; Alshawabkeh, AN; Avalos, LA; Bastain, T; Blair, C; Breton, C ...
Published in: Psychol Assess
November 2023

To assess the public health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, investigators from the National Institutes of Health Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) research program developed the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale (PTSS). Based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) acute stress disorder symptom criteria, the PTSS is designed for adolescent (13-21 years) and adult self-report and caregiver-report on 3-12-year-olds. To evaluate psychometric properties, we used PTSS data collected between April 2020 and August 2021 from non-pregnant adult caregivers (n = 11,483), pregnant/postpartum individuals (n = 1,656), adolescents (n = 1,795), and caregivers reporting on 3-12-year-olds (n = 2,896). We used Mokken scale analysis to examine unidimensionality and reliability, Pearson correlations to evaluate relationships with other relevant variables, and analyses of variance to identify regional, age, and sex differences. Mokken analysis resulted in a moderately strong, unidimensional scale that retained nine of the original 10 items. We detected small to moderate positive associations with depression, anxiety, and general stress, and negative associations with life satisfaction. Adult caregivers had the highest PTSS scores, followed by adolescents, pregnant/postpartum individuals, and children. Caregivers of younger children, females, and older youth had higher PTSS scores compared to caregivers of older children, males, and younger youth, respectively. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Duke Scholars

Altmetric Attention Stats
Dimensions Citation Stats

Published In

Psychol Assess

DOI

EISSN

1939-134X

Publication Date

November 2023

Volume

35

Issue

11

Start / End Page

1054 / 1067

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • United States
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Psychometrics
  • Pregnancy
  • Pandemics
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Child
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Blackwell, C. K., Sherlock, P., Jackson, K. L., Hofheimer, J. A., Cella, D., Algermissen, M. A., … Margolis, A. E. (2023). Development and psychometric validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for children and adults. Psychol Assess, 35(11), 1054–1067. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001211
Blackwell, Courtney K., Phillip Sherlock, Kathryn L. Jackson, Julie A. Hofheimer, David Cella, Molly A. Algermissen, Akram N. Alshawabkeh, et al. “Development and psychometric validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for children and adults.Psychol Assess 35, no. 11 (November 2023): 1054–67. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001211.
Blackwell CK, Sherlock P, Jackson KL, Hofheimer JA, Cella D, Algermissen MA, et al. Development and psychometric validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for children and adults. Psychol Assess. 2023 Nov;35(11):1054–67.
Blackwell, Courtney K., et al. “Development and psychometric validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for children and adults.Psychol Assess, vol. 35, no. 11, Nov. 2023, pp. 1054–67. Pubmed, doi:10.1037/pas0001211.
Blackwell CK, Sherlock P, Jackson KL, Hofheimer JA, Cella D, Algermissen MA, Alshawabkeh AN, Avalos LA, Bastain T, Blair C, Bosquet Enlow M, Brennan PA, Breton C, Bush NR, Chandran A, Collazo S, Conradt E, Crowell SE, Deoni S, Elliott AJ, Frazier JA, Ganiban JM, Gold DR, Herbstman JB, Joseph C, Karagas MR, Lester B, Lasky-Su JA, Leve LD, LeWinn KZ, Mason WA, McGowan EC, McKee KS, Miller RL, Neiderhiser JM, O’Connor TG, Oken E, O’Shea TM, Pagliaccio D, Schmidt RJ, Singh AM, Stanford JB, Trasande L, Wright RJ, Duarte CS, Margolis AE. Development and psychometric validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for children and adults. Psychol Assess. 2023 Nov;35(11):1054–1067.

Published In

Psychol Assess

DOI

EISSN

1939-134X

Publication Date

November 2023

Volume

35

Issue

11

Start / End Page

1054 / 1067

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • United States
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Psychometrics
  • Pregnancy
  • Pandemics
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Child