The development and validation of the Misophonia response scale

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Clinical Assessment

Background:

• Current Misophonia scales lack validation and fail to capture the full spectrum of responses.
• Existing measures often overlook non-auditory triggers and combined emotional/physiological reactions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a comprehensive measure for the magnitude of misophonic responses.
• To address limitations of existing scales by including diverse sensory triggers and response types.

Main Methods:

• Three studies involved individuals with self-diagnosed misophonia.
• Initial item development involved expert and participant feedback for face and content validity.
• Scale structure, reliability, and validity were assessed using principal component analysis (PCA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).

Main Results:

• A 22-item Misophonia Response Scale was finalized, assessing emotional, physiological, and life participation aspects.
• The scale demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's alphas 0.77–0.89) and suitable convergent/discriminant validity.
• Factor analysis confirmed a robust three-component structure explaining 53.97% of the variance.

Conclusions:

• The Misophonia Response Scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing misophonia.
• Its brevity and ease of use facilitate self-report in research settings.
• This scale will enhance the understanding of misophonia by capturing a wider range of responses.