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Association of Self-Report Measures with PTSD and Depression in Veterans

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders (T Geracioti and K Chard, Section Editors)
  • Published:
Current Treatment Options in Psychiatry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of review Self-report measures are common in clinical and research practice. These questionnaires permit fast evaluation of symptom severity and change over time and are sometimes used to identify the presence of possible psychiatric disorders. However, these measures may be less syndrome-specific than previously believed. In Iraq and Afghanistan-era veterans, the PTSD Checklist (PCL) and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) are commonly used both clinically and in research due to high rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. Clarity regarding the presumed specificity of such measures becomes important to interpretation of research results and application of psychiatric interventions. The current review intends to further this conversation.

Recent findings A recent paper found that the PCL-Military version and BDI-II were equally correlated to a diagnosis of PTSD per the gold standard clinician-administered PTSD scale. Using a research sample of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, we found similar moderate to large correlations between both self-report measures and both diagnoses. A diagnosis of a depressive disorder was equally correlated with both the BDI-II and PCL.

Summary Results suggest that a third, underlying factor of general distress may be the target of each presumed syndrome-specific measure. Clinicians and researchers are encouraged to use such measures to assess distress or improvement following interventions rather than for diagnostic purposes.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the resources of the W.G. “Bill” Hefner Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, Clinical Center (MA-MIRECC).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MA-MIRECC), Salisbury, NC, USA

    Holly M. Miskey Ph.D. & Robert D. Shura Psy.D., ABPP

  2. W.G. (Bill) Hefner Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 11M-2 MH/BS, 1601 Brenner Ave, Salisbury, NC, 28144, USA

    Holly M. Miskey Ph.D. & Robert D. Shura Psy.D., ABPP

  3. Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA

    Holly M. Miskey Ph.D. & Robert D. Shura Psy.D., ABPP

Authors
  1. Holly M. Miskey Ph.D.
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  2. Robert D. Shura Psy.D., ABPP
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Correspondence to Holly M. Miskey Ph.D..

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The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, or the US government.

Conflict of Interest

Holly M. Miskey declares that she has no conflict of interest. Robert D. Shura declares that he has no conflict of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article contains studies with human subjects. Studies were reviewed and approved by the local Institutional Review Board. Written and verbal informed consents were obtained from all participants. Welfare and privacy of human subjects were protected and maintained.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders

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Miskey, H.M., Shura, R.D. Association of Self-Report Measures with PTSD and Depression in Veterans. Curr Treat Options Psych 4, 254–261 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40501-017-0120-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40501-017-0120-2

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