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The Child PTSD Symptom Scale
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About The Child PTSD Symptom Scale
Scale Name
The Child PTSD Symptom Scale
Author Details
Edna B. Foa, Katherine Treadwell, Kelly Johnson, and Norah Feeny
Translation Availability
Not Sure
Background/Description
The Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) is a widely recognized psychological assessment tool designed to evaluate post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in children and adolescents aged 8 to 18 years. Developed by Edna B. Foa and colleagues in 2001, the CPSS was created to address the need for a reliable and valid instrument specifically tailored to measure PTSD in younger populations, particularly those who have experienced trauma such as sexual assault, physical abuse, or exposure to violence.
The CPSS is a self-report measure that assesses the frequency and severity of PTSD symptoms based on the diagnostic criteria outlined in the DSM-IV. The scale consists of 17 items that correspond to the core symptom clusters of PTSD: re-experiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal. Additionally, the CPSS includes a functional impairment section that evaluates the impact of these symptoms on various aspects of the child’s daily life, such as school performance, relationships, and social activities.
The CPSS is used in both clinical and research settings to screen for PTSD, monitor symptom changes over time, and evaluate the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions. It is particularly useful in identifying children who may need further psychological support following traumatic experiences.
The child PTSD symptom scale is developed by Edna B. Foa, Ph.D. The CPSS is used to assess post-traumatic stress disorder severity in children between ages 8-18. It consists of 17 items in part 1 and 7 items in part 2. It takes approximately 20 minutes to administer as an interview measure (by a clinician or a therapist) and 10 minutes to complete as a self-report. The Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) maps on DSM-IV criteria and yields a PTSD aggregate score as well as scores on the re-experiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal subscales.
The CPSS comprises 24-items, 17 of which correspond to the DSM-IV symptoms. In the first section, answers are on a Likert-type scale where 0 is not at all, 1 is once a week or less/once in a while, 2 is 2 to 4 times a week/half the time, and 3 is 5 or more times a week/almost always. In the second part of the questionnaire, respondents are asked about functional impairment, or how much the problems indicated in section one have interfered with specific areas of life. These 7 questions are scored dichotomously as absent (0) or present (1). Scores range from 0 — 7, with higher scores indicating greater functional impairment. See original article (Foa et al., 2001)
Administration, Scoring and Interpretation
- Participant Selection: The CPSS is intended for children and adolescents aged 8 to 18 who have experienced a traumatic event. It can be used in clinical practice, schools, and research studies.
- Questionnaire Distribution: The CPSS is administered as a self-report questionnaire. The child or adolescent is asked to respond to 17 items that assess the frequency of PTSD symptoms over the past month.
- Response Format: Participants rate each item on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 3 (5 or more times a week/almost always), indicating how often they have experienced each symptom.
- Functional Impairment Section: After the symptom items, the CPSS includes seven additional questions that assess the extent to which the symptoms have interfered with the child’s daily functioning, such as at school, home, or with peers.
- Scoring: The total score for PTSD symptoms is obtained by summing the responses to the 17 symptom items, with higher scores indicating more severe PTSD symptoms. The functional impairment section is scored separately.
Reliability and Validity
The Child PTSD Symptom Scale has demonstrated strong psychometric properties. The scale has high internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha typically exceeding 0.80, indicating reliable measurement of PTSD symptoms in children. Its validity is supported by its strong correlation with other established measures of PTSD and its ability to distinguish between children with and without PTSD.
Further validation studies, including those by Gillihan et al. (in press), have confirmed the CPSS’s effectiveness in diverse populations, including female adolescent survivors of sexual assault. The scale is considered a gold standard in assessing PTSD symptoms in children and adolescents.
Available Versions
24-Items
Reference
Foa, E. B., Johnson, K. M., Feeny, N. C., & Treadwell, K. R. (2001). The Child PTSD Symptom Scale: A preliminary examination of its psychometric properties. Journal of clinical child psychology, 30(3), 376-384.
Gillihan, S. J., Aderka, I. M., Conklin, P. H., Capaldi, S., & Foa, E. B. (2013). The Child PTSD Symptom Scale: psychometric properties in female adolescent sexual assault survivors. Psychological assessment, 25(1), 23.
Important Link
Scale File:
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS)?
A: The CPSS is a self-report scale designed to assess PTSD symptoms in children and adolescents aged 8 to 18, based on the DSM-IV criteria.
Q: Who developed the CPSS?
A: The CPSS was developed by Edna B. Foa, Katherine Treadwell, Kelly Johnson, and Norah Feeny in 2001.
Q: How is the CPSS administered?
A: The CPSS is administered as a self-report questionnaire with 17 items assessing PTSD symptoms and 7 items evaluating functional impairment.
Q: What are the core symptom clusters measured by the CPSS?
A: The CPSS measures re-experiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal, which are the core symptom clusters of PTSD.
Q: How reliable is the CPSS?
A: The CPSS has demonstrated strong reliability and validity, making it a trusted tool for assessing PTSD symptoms in children and adolescents.
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