A parental tool to screen for posttraumatic stress in children: first psychometric results

The Children's Revised Impact of Event Scale (CRIES-13) is a brief self-report measure designed to screen children for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study investigates the psychometric properties of a Dutch version of the CRIES-13-parent version and evaluates its correlation with the child version. A sample of 59 trauma-exposed children (8 years-18 years) and their parents completed an assessment including the CRIES-13 (child/parent version) along with the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV: Parent version. Results demonstrated good internal consistency (α = .87) with acceptable values for the 3 subscales. A strong correlation (r = .73) with another measure of PTSD and lower correlations with a behavioral measure (r = .15 to .38) were found, confirming the convergent/divergent validity. A cutoff score ≥ 31 emerged as the best balance between sensitivity and specificity, and correctly classified 83.6% of all children as having a diagnosis of PTSD. This study provides support for the reliability and validity of the CRIES-13-parent version as a screening measure for posttraumatic stress in children.