TPC-Journal-V4-Issue3

The Professional Counselor \Volume 4, Issue 3 224 and worry occurring for 6 months or more, difficulty controlling worry, the anxiety and worry perhaps being associated with difficulty concentrating and irritability, and the anxiety and worry causing distress (APA, 2013g, p. 222). The measures include the following items that the DSM-5 does not: “avoided, or did not approach or enter, situations about which I worry”; “left situations early or participated only minimally due to worries”; “spent lots of time making decisions, putting off making decisions, or preparing for situations, due to worries”; “sought reassurance from others due to worries”; and “needed help to cope with anxiety” (Craske et al., 2013c, 2013d). Also, item 3 on the measures (“had thoughts of bad things happening”) is similar to criterion A in the DSM-5 (“anxiety and worry . . . about a number of events or activities”) with different wording (APA, 2013g, p. 222; Craske et al., 2013c, 2013d). The National Stressful Events Survey PTSD Short Scale (NSESSS; Kilpatrick, Resnick, & Friedman, 2013c) contains nine items and is to be completed on a scale of 0 ( not at all ) to 4 ( extremel y). The criteria for post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the DSM-5 include a list of possible stressful events and situations (APA, 2013g). The NSESSS does not include a list of stressful events and situations for the individual. Criteria and items that are the same or similar on the NSESSS and in DSM-5 PTSD criteria include flashbacks, emotional (NSESSS) or psychological distress ( DSM-5 ), avoidance, negative feelings about self, distorted cognitions and blame, negative emotional states, loss of interest in activities, anger and irritability, self-destructive behavior, hypervigilance and startle response (APA, 2013g; Kilpatrick et al., 2013c). The items/criteria may be worded and/or organized differently but they have the same meaning. Although all items on the NSESSS are included in the DSM-5’s criteria for PTSD, the DSM-5 includes additional criteria beyond what the NSESSS measures, which suggests the DSM-5 as being more thorough of the two, and indicates the inconsistencies of the NSESSS when compared to the DSM-5 criteria. The following criteria from the DSM-5 are not included in the NSESSS: dreams, physiological reactions, dissociative amnesia, detachment/estrangement from others, inability to experience positive emotions, concentration issues and sleep issues. There are notes in the DSM-5 for application to children. Children may partake in recurring play/reenactment having to do with the traumatic event. Dreams with unrecognizable content may occur (APA, 2013g). The criteria above were not included in the child version of the NSESSS (Kilpatrick, Resnick, & Friedman, 2013d). Also, the DSM-5 has a different section for children 6 and under, but the NSESSS is to be completed by children 11–17 (APA, 2013g; Kilpatrick et al., 2013d). The National Stressful Events Survey Acute Stress Disorder Short Scale (NSESSS; Kilpatrick et al., 2013a) for severity of acute stress symptoms includes seven items and is to be completed on a scale of 0 ( not at all ) to 4 ( extremely ). Six out of the seven items on this measure are the same as those on the measure for PTSD above. Items that are also included in acute stress disorder in the DSM-5 are flashbacks, emotional (NSESSS) or psychological distress ( DSM-5 ), detachment, avoidance, hypervigilance, startle response and irritability/ anger (APA, 2013g). Similar to the NSESSS for PTSD, all seven items on the NSESSS for acute stress disorder are included in the DSM-5 criteria, but certain DSM-5 criteria are not included in the NSESSS. The criteria not included are as follows: dreams, inability to experience positive emotions, dissociative amnesia, sleep disturbance and concentration issues. There are notes in the DSM-5 for application to children. Children may partake in recurring play/reenactment having to do with the traumatic event. Dreams with unrecognizable content may occur. The criteria above were not included in the child version of the NSESSS (Kilpatrick et al., 2013b). Neither of the NSESSS measures fully assess an individual for the DSM-5 criteria for PTSD or acute stress disorder. The Brief Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES-B)—Modified (Dalenberg & Carlson, 2010a) has eight items and is completed on a scale of 0 ( not at all ) to 4 ( more than once a day ) in the past 7 days. When comparing this measure to dissociative disorders in the DSM-5 , it is hard to find a specific criterion that matches closely to