ASSESSING ACUTE STRESS DISORDER - PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES OF A STRUCTURED CLINICAL INTERVIEW

This study presents the development of a structured clinical interview to diagnose acute stress disorder (ASD). The Acute Stress Disorder In terview (ASDI) is a 19-item, dichotomously scored interview schedule t hat is based on criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; American Psychiatric Association. 1994). I t was validated against clinician-based diagnoses of ASD on 65 trauma survivors assessed between I and 3 weeks posttrauma. It possessed good internal consistency (r = .90), sensitivity (91%), and specificity (9 3%). Test-retest reliability was evaluated on 60 trauma survivors betw een 1 and 3 weeks posttrauma, with a readministration interval of 2 to 7 days. Test-retest reliability of ASDI severity scores was strong (r = .88), and diagnostic agreement for presence (88%) and absence (94%) of ASD diagnosis was high. The ASDI appears to be a useful tool to id entify those individuals who suffer ASD and are at risk of long-term p osttraumatic stress disorder.