PTSD: 22 questionnaires and rating scales

The PCL-5 is a standardized questionnaire designed to assess the intensity of symptoms related to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), based on DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. It quickly identifies the impact of a traumatic event on an individual by measuring four main symptom clusters: re-experiencing, avoidance, alterations in cognitions and mood, and hyperarousal.

The PCL-S is used to screen for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It was created in 1993 by Weathers F.W. et al., based on the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. It is derived from the PCL-C (civilian version) and the PCL-M (military version), but focuses on a specific event.

The CTQ is a self-report instrument for retrospectively measuring the frequency and severity of five major types of maltreatment experienced during childhood: emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect. It provides a total score as well as scores for each dimension, and also includes a minimization/denial scale to assess the respondent's tendency to underestimate or deny their experiences of maltreatment.

The TRAUMAQ is a tool designed to comprehensively assess the psychotraumatic syndrome. It evaluates both the frequency and the intensity of the manifestations of psychological trauma, as well as the traumatic experience, including their social repercussions. The questionnaire consists of 62 items divided into 10 scales, which makes it an exhaustive and rigorous tool.

The UCLA PTSD Reaction Index for DSM-5 is a self-report questionnaire for identifying and assessing the severity of posttraumatic stress symptoms in children and adolescents following one or more traumatic experiences. It is explicitly based on the DSM-5 criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder and provides a quantitative estimate of symptomatology, making it a suitable tool for screening as well as for monitoring in clinical practice and research.

The CTQ - Children Version is a self-report tool for detecting and quantifying traumatic experiences endured during childhood, including different forms of maltreatment and neglect. It is divided into several subscales assessing emotional, physical and sexual abuse, as well as emotional and physical neglect. This tool is used for both clinical and research purposes, to better understand the impact of early trauma in children.

The TSI-2 is a self-report instrument designed to assess a wide range of psychological symptoms associated with exposure to traumatic events. It measures different dimensions such as dissociation, depression, anxiety, irritability, sleep problems and posttraumatic symptoms. It is commonly used in clinical and forensic contexts to support the assessment of the psychological impact of trauma.

The ITQ is designed to assess symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) according to ICD-11 criteria. It focuses on specific symptom clusters associated with these diagnoses and offers a concise assessment of trauma responses.

The CRIES is a questionnaire intended to assess the impact of traumatic events in children. It is designed to measure symptoms of avoidance, intrusion and hyperarousal following a traumatic event.

The TEC is a self-report questionnaire designed for the structured identification of potentially traumatic experiences over the lifetime, particularly early interpersonal trauma. It explores different types of exposure, including emotional neglect, emotional and physical abuse, sexual harassment, sexual abuse, and other significant events. The tool is mainly used in clinical work with trauma, dissociative disorders, and stress-related disorders to document the trauma history, appraise the cumulative trauma load, and guide the clinical interview. It does not replace a diagnostic assessment but provides a standardized basis that is useful for the history and case formulation.

The Peritraumatic Distress Inventory is a tool that measures the emotional distress experienced at the time of a traumatic event. It is designed to assess fear, nervousness, and other immediate emotional symptoms associated with a trauma. It can be used to predict the later development of post-traumatic stress-related disorders.

The CPTS-RI is a self-report questionnaire designed to screen for post-traumatic stress symptoms and estimate their severity in children and adolescents after a potentially traumatic event. Widely used in child psychotraumatology, it mainly explores re-experiencing, avoidance, emotional numbing, and physiological hyperarousal. This tool helps the psychologist objectify the intensity of the clinical impact, guide the diagnostic assessment, and monitor symptom progression over the course of treatment. It does not replace a structured clinical interview, but it is a particularly relevant screening and monitoring aid in clinical, medical-psychological, and research settings.

The Trauma Symptom Checklist-40 is a 40-item self-report questionnaire for adults. It is used to identify the intensity of symptoms frequently associated with trauma experienced in childhood or adulthood. It explores six clinical domains: anxiety, depression, dissociation, sexual abuse trauma index, sexual problems, and sleep disturbance. Used mainly in research and as a complementary measure in clinical assessment, it provides a total score of trauma-related distress and does not, on its own, constitute a complete diagnostic instrument for PTSD.

The HTQ is a self-report questionnaire developed to measure exposure to traumatic events and assess the presence of posttraumatic stress symptoms, particularly in refugee and migrant populations. It includes a list of potentially traumatic events as well as a section assessing clinical symptoms.

The SIDES is a structured clinical interview designed to assess the psychological consequences of prolonged, repeated, or interpersonal trauma, particularly the complex traumatic stress presentations historically described as DESNOS. It systematically explores several domains that are often insufficiently covered by standard PTSD assessment: emotional and impulse dysregulation, disturbances of attention and consciousness, alterations in self-perception, relational difficulties, somatization, and alterations in belief systems or meaning. In clinical practice, it helps the psychologist clarify a complex trauma profile, objectify the functional impact, and guide case formulation and the treatment plan.

The PDEQ is a tool designed to measure dissociative experiences occurring during or immediately after a traumatic event. Peritraumatic dissociation refers to phenomena in which a person feels detached from reality during a stressful or traumatic event. These symptoms may include experiences of derealization, depersonalization, and memory gaps regarding the event.

The Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory is a self-report questionnaire used in psychotraumatology to identify and quantify negative cognitions related to a traumatic event. It explores three clinically useful dimensions: negative cognitions about the self, negative cognitions about the world and self-blame. This tool helps refine the assessment of posttraumatic stress disorder, support case formulation and monitor cognitive change over the course of treatment, particularly in cognitive-behavioral approaches.

This scale is used to measure the severity of posttraumatic stress symptoms related to life events. It is often used in research and clinical settings to assess stress reactions in individuals who have experienced traumatic events.

The Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES) is a self-report tool used to identify symptoms of dissociation. It is often used in clinical settings to screen for dissociative disorders such as dissociative identity disorder. The test covers various aspects of dissociation, including derealization, dissociative amnesia and depersonalization experiences.

The DSS is a self-report scale used to measure the intensity of depersonalization symptoms in adults. It explores experiences such as feeling detached from oneself, feeling like an outside observer of one's thoughts or body, subjective numbing, and a sense of unreality of the self. In clinical practice, it is mainly used for symptom identification, estimating baseline severity, and monitoring changes over time, particularly in dissociative disorders and the dissociative subtype of PTSD. It does not replace a clinical interview or a differential diagnosis, but it provides a quick, structured measure that is useful for symptom monitoring.

The CAPS-5 is the gold-standard structured instrument for assessing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) according to DSM-5 criteria. It makes it possible to establish the presence of the diagnosis, the severity of symptoms and their course over time, based on a semi-structured interview conducted by a trained clinician.

The CPSS is a self-report instrument designed to measure the severity of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in children and adolescents following a traumatic event. It quantifies both the presence and the frequency of symptoms, as well as the functional impact on the child's daily life.