Development and Psychometric Validation of the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale for Children and Adults

Authors

Courtney K. Blackwell, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Phillip Sherlock, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Kathryn L. Jackson, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Julie A. Hofheimer, University of North Carolina School of Medicine
David Cella, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Molly A. Algermissen, Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Akram N. Alshawabkeh, Northeastern University
Lyndsay A. Avalos, Kaiser Permanente North California
Tracy Bastain, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California
Clancy Blair, New York University Grossman School of Medicine
Michelle Bosquet Enlow, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School
Patricia A. Brennan, Emory University
Carrie Breton, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California
Nicole R. Bush, University of California, San Francisco
Aruna Chandran, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health
Shaina Collazo, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Elisabeth Conradt, University of Utah
Sheila E. Crowell, University of Utah
Sean Deoni, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Amy J. Elliott, Avera Research Institute, University of South Dakota School of Medicine
Jean A. Frazier, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School
Jody M. Ganiban, George Washington University
Diane R. Gold, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Julie B. Herbstman, University Mailman School of Public Health
Christine Joseph, Henry Ford Health System
Margaret R. Karagas, Geisel School of Medicine
Barry Lester, Women & Infants Hospital, Brown University
Jessica A. Lasky-Su, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Leslie D. Leve, University of Oregon College of Education
Kaja Z. LeWinn, University of California, San Francisco
W. Alex Mason, University of Nebraska—LincolnFollow
Elisabeth C. McGowan, Women & Infants Hospital, Brown University
Kimberly S. McKee, University of Michigan Medical School
Rachel L. Miller, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Jenae M. Neiderhiser, Penn State University
Thomas G. O’Connor, University of Rochester
Emily Oken, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute
T. Michael O’Shea, University of North Carolina School of Medicine
David Pagliaccio, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York State Psychiatric Institute
Rebecca J. Schmidt, University of California—Davis School of Medicine
Anne Marie Singh, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Joseph B. Stanford, University of Utah School of Medicine
Leonardo Trasande, New York University Grossman School of Medicine
Rosalind J. Wright, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Cristiane S. Duarte, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Columbia University
Amy E. Margolis, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Columbia University

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

11-2023

Citation

Psychol Assess. 2023 November ; 35(11): 1054–1067. doi:10.1037/pas0001211.

Comments

HHS Public Access.

Abstract

To assess the public health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, investigators from the National Institutes of Health Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) research program developed the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale (PTSS). Based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) acute stress disorder symptom criteria, the PTSS is designed for adolescent (13–21 years) and adult self-report and caregiver-report on 3–12-year-olds. To evaluate psychometric properties, we used PTSS data collected between April 2020 and August 2021 from non-pregnant adult caregivers (n = 11,483), pregnant/postpartum individuals (n = 1,656), adolescents (n = 1,795), and caregivers reporting on 3–12-year-olds (n = 2,896). We used Mokken scale analysis to examine unidimensionality and reliability, Pearson correlations to evaluate relationships with other relevant variables, and analyses of variance to identify regional, age, and sex differences. Mokken analysis resulted in a moderately strong, unidimensional scale that retained nine of the original 10 items. We detected small to moderate positive associations with depression, anxiety, and general stress, and negative associations with life satisfaction. Adult caregivers had the highest PTSS scores, followed by adolescents, pregnant/postpartum individuals, and children. Caregivers of younger children, females, and older youth had higher PTSS scores compared to caregivers of older children, males, and younger youth, respectively.