THE FRAGEBOGEN (QUESTIONNAIRE) ZU DISSOZI ATIVEN-SYMPTOMEN (FDS) - GERMAN ADAPTION, RELIABILITY, AND VALIDITY OF THE AMERICAN DISSOCIATIVE EXPERIENCE SCALE (DES)

The ''Fragebogen zu dissoziativen Symptomen (FDS)'' represents the aut horised German translation and adaptation of the ''Dissociative Experi ence Scale'' (DES: Bernstein and Putnam 1986). The original scale comp rises 28 items covering dissociative experiences with regard to memory , identity, awareness and cognition according to DSM-III-R and DSM-IV. For the German version, 16 items were added to cover dissociative phe nomena according to ICD-10, mainly pseudoneurological conversion sympt oms. Reliability and validity of the German version were studied in a total sample of 813 persons and were compared to the results of the or iginal version. Test-retest reliability of the FDS was r(tt)=0.88 and Cronbach's consistency coefficient was alpha=0.93, which is comparable to the results of the DES. The instrument differentiates between diff erent samples (healthy control subjects, students, unselected neurolog ical and psychiatric inpatients, neurological and psychiatric patients with a dissociative disorder and schizophrenics). The FDS is an easil y applicable, reliable and valid measure to quantify dissociative expe riences.