Cognitive Trauma Therapy for Battered Women With PTSD (CTT-BW).

This article describes a second treatment-outcome study of cognitive trauma therapy for battered women with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; CTT-BW). CTT-BW includes trauma history exploration: PTSD education; stress management; exposure to abuse and abuser reminders; self-monitoring of negative self-talk; cognitive therapy for guilt; and modules on self-advocacy, assertiveness, and how to identify perpetrators. One hundred twenty-five ethnically diverse women were randomly assigned to immediate or delayed CTT-BW. PTSD remitted in 87% of women who completed CTT-BW, with large reductions in depression and guilt and substantial increases in self-esteem. White and ethnic minority women benefited equally from CTT-BW. Similar treatment outcomes were obtained by male and female therapists and by therapists with different levels of education and training. Gains were maintained at 3- and 6-month follow-ups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intense fear, helplessness, “and” horror? An empirical investigation of DSM-IV PTSD Criterion A2.

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., DSM–IV; American Psychiatric Association [APA]), an experiential response was added to the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) traumatic stressor criterion (Criterion A). In addition to witnessing or experiencing an event involving serious threat to one's life or physical integrity (Criterion A1), a traumatic stressor must also evoke an intensely negative emotional response (Criterion A2), operationalized as “intense fear, helplessness, or horror” (emphasis added, p. 428). There has been some question about, but little empirical investigation of, the PTSD predictive value of Criterion A2. Toward this end, a study was conducted to examine differential rates of PTSD among individuals who met Criterion A2 by reporting 1, 2, or all 3 A2 responses. Participants included 205 military personnel, military retirees, and military family members who were receiving services from 4 treatment programs at an army medical center. Forty-three percent of individuals who reported all 3 A2 responses met diagnostic criteria for PTSD; however, only 9% of individuals who reported fewer than 3 A2 responses met criteria for PTSD. The results suggest that the definition of PTSD Criterion A2 may be too broad. A revision or refinement of Criterion A2 in the next edition of the DSM may be indicated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validation of a brief measure of posttraumatic stress disorder: The Distressing Event Questionnaire (DEQ).

The Distressing Event Questionnaire (DEQ) is a brief instrument for assessing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) according to criteria provided in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.). The DEQ possesses high internal consistency and exhibited satisfactory short-term temporal stability in studies with Vietnam War combat veterans and battered women. In a sample of Vietnam War veterans and 4 separate samples of abused women (with histories of incest, rape, intimate partner abuse, or prostitution and abuse), the DEQ exhibited very good discriminative validity when judged against structured interview assessment of PTSD. The DEQ exhibited strong convergent validity with other PTSD measures and other indexes of adjustment and also exhibited strong convergent validity as a measure of PTSD across ethnic groups in both the veteran sample and the combined women's sample. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and validation of the Trauma-Related Guilt Inventory (TRGI).

The article describes the development and psychometric evaluation of the Trauma-Related Guilt Inventory (TRGI). An initial questionnaire was constructed from multiple sources of information. Three factor analytic studies were conducted to refine the TRGI and determine its factor structure, which consists of a Distress factor and three cognitive factors, Hindsight-Bias/Responsibility, Wrongdoing, and Lack of Justification. The TRGI has high internal consistency and adequate temporal stability. In validity studies with Vietnam veterans and battered women, TRGI scales and subscales were significantly correlated with other measures of guilt and with measures of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and other indexes of adjustment. Findings support the conceptualization of trauma-related guilt as a multidimensional construct and highlight the role of cognitions in the experience of guilt and posttrauma psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Use of sociometric peer nominations in medical education research.

A peer nomination scale involving 11 variables, developed to evaluate medical student effectiveness was administered to 87 senior-class students. Overall nomination reliability was .89, correlation between peer nominations and instructor evaluations was .44, and correlations between nominations and course grades were all positive and, in most instances, significantly different from zero. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Content validity in psychological assessment: A functional approach to concepts and methods.

This article examines the definition, importance, conceptual basis, and functional nature of content validity, with an emphasis on psychological assessment in clinical situations. The conditional and dynamic nature of content validity is discussed, and multiple elements of content validity along with quantitative and qualitative methods of content validation are reviewed. Finally, several recommendations for reporting and interpreting content validation evidence are offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)