A comparison of dissociative patients to simulators on the trauma symptom inventory-2

Abstract

Dissociative identity disorder (DID) patients report experiencing chronic trauma in childhood which contributes to severe symptomatology in adulthood. These traumatic reactions are associated with validity and clinical scale elevations on a variety of psychological assessments. The Trauma Symptom Inventory-2 (TSI-2) measures posttraumatic stress symptoms, and has yet to be studied with a complex dissociative disorders (CDD) population. This study compared a group of CDD patients to coached DID simulators on the TSI-2. The CDD group had clinically significant elevations on a majority of the TSI-2 clinical scales and factors. Profile analysis revealed significant differences between CDD and coached simulator TSI-2 profiles. The TSI-2 ATR correctly classified 60 - 73% of participants, and specificity scores were unacceptably low. These results suggest that the TSI-2 may not be adequate at distinguishing feigned CDD from CDD.