The Detailed Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress, 2nd Edition (DAPS-II): Initial Psychometric Evaluation in a Trauma-Exposed Community Sample

Abstract

The Detailed Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress (DAPS; Briere, 2001) is a comprehensive, multiscale questionnaire that assesses all posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnostic criteria, as well as peritraumatic responses and associated problems including dissociation, suicidality, and substance abuse. Although relatively few psychometric studies of the DAPS have been conducted, DAPS scores have been shown to have excellent reliability, validity, and clinically utility, performing as well or better than leading PTSD questionnaires. The DAPS was recently revised for DSM-5 (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The present study was an initial psychometric evaluation of the DAPS for DSM-5 (DAPS-II) in a community sample with mixed trauma exposure (N = 367). DAPS-II total PTSD scores demonstrated high internal consistency (α = .98), strong convergent validity with the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (r = .91), and good discriminant validity with other measures of trauma-related intrusions and avoidance, dissociation, depression, anxiety, appetite gain, interpersonal needs, and well-being (rs = -.13 to .75). DAPS-II associated features scales also demonstrated high internal consistency and good convergent and discriminant associations. In confirmatory factor analyses the DSM-5 four-factor model of PTSD provided adequate fit, but leading alternative six- and seven-factor models (Armour, Mullerova, & Elhai, 2016) provided better fit. Taken together, these results indicate that the DAPS-II is a psychometrically sound measure of DSM-5 PTSD symptoms and would be a useful evidence-based tool in both research and clinical settings with diverse trauma populations.