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The PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version: reliability, validity, and factor structure in a nonclinical sample
Daniel Conybeare1, Evelyn Behar, Ari Solomon
1Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, IL 60607, USA. conybeare@gmail.com
Journal of Clinical Psychology
|April 21, 2012
Summary
The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) is a reliable and valid tool for assessing PTSD symptoms in college students, even those without a diagnosed trauma history.
Area of Science:
- Psychological assessment
- Mental health research
- Trauma studies
Background:
- The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) is widely used to screen for PTSD.
- Its psychometric properties require validation in diverse populations, including nonclinical student samples.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the reliability, validity, and factor structure of the PCL-C.
- To assess the PCL-C's utility in unselected undergraduate students.
Main Methods:
- The PCL-C was administered to 471 undergraduate students at a large university.
- Participants were not preselected for trauma exposure or symptom severity.
Main Results:
- The PCL-C demonstrated strong internal consistency and retest reliability.
- It showed favorable convergent and discriminant validity compared to other PTSD measures.
- Both 1-factor and 2-factor models of PTSD symptoms were supported in this sample.
Conclusions:
- The PCL-C is a valid and reliable measure for PTSD symptoms in nonclinical student populations.
- It may be superior to alternative PTSD assessment tools.
- The factor structure in nonclinical samples might not align with traditional PTSD symptom clusters.
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