The peritraumatic distress inventory: A proposed measure of PTSD criterionA2

Objective: Meeting criterion A2 for the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress d isorder (PTSD) in DSM-IV requires that an individual have high levels of di stress during or after the traumatic event. Because of the paucity of valid and reliable instruments for assessing such responses, the authors develop ed a 13-item self-report measure, the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory, to obtain a quantitative measure of the level of distress experienced during a nd immediately after a traumatic event. Method: The cross-sectional study group comprised 702 police officers and 3 01 matched nonpolice comparison subjects varying in ethnicity and gender wh o were exposed to a wide range of critical incidents. Results: The Peritraumatic Distress Inventory was found to be internally co nsistent, with good test-retest reliability and good convergent and diverge nt validity. Even after controlling for peritraumatic dissociation and for general psychopathology, the authors found that Peritraumatic Distress Inve ntory scores correlated with two measures of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Conclusions: The Peritraumatic Distress inventory holds promise as a measur e of PTSD criterion A2. Future studies should prospectively examine the abi lity of the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory to predict PTSD and its associ ated biological and cognitive correlates in other trauma-exposed groups.