The Disorganized Response Scale: Construct validity of a potential self-report measure of disorganized attachment

Based on the paucity of self-report measures of disorganized attachment (DA), we developed and tested a scale examining adults' self-reported disorganized verbalizations, cognitions, and behaviors when discussing their childhoods.

The Disorganized Response Scale (DRS) was created and administered to 640 university students, and its associations with variables known to covary with DA, such as childhood maltreatment, insecure attachment, and psychological symptoms, were examined.

Factor analysis of DRS items revealed a single 15-item dimension that reflected participants' self-reported disorganized responses when discussing their childhoods. Structural equation modeling indicated a good fit to a model in which fearful caretaking and childhood abuse and neglect were associated with the DRS. In turn, the DRS, along with anxious and avoidant attachment, was independently related to symptoms and partially mediated the relationship between child maltreatment and symptomatology. Hierarchical multiple regression indicated that the DRS accounted for significant additional variance in posttraumatic stress, externalization, somatization, and, especially, dissociation, even after demographics and both anxious and avoidant attachment were taken into account.

Analyses support the construct validity of the DRS as a measure of disorganized attachment-related responses in adults. Further research is indicated to replicate these findings and to evaluate their convergence with interview measures of DA. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).