Assessment of obsessive-compulsive symptom dimensions: Development and evaluation of the Dimensional Obsessive-Compulsive Scale.

Abstract

Although several measures of obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms exist, most are limited in that they are not consistent with the most recent empirical findings on the nature and dimensional structure of obsessions and compulsions. In the present research, the authors developed and evaluated a measure called the Dimensional Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (DOCS) to address limitations of existing OC symptom measures. The DOCS is a 20-item measure that assesses the four dimensions of OC symptoms most reliably replicated in previous structural research. Factorial validity of the DOCS was supported by exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of 3 samples, including individuals with OC disorder, those with other anxiety disorders, and nonclinical individuals. Scores on the DOCS displayed good performance on indices of reliability and validity, as well as sensitivity to treatment and diagnostic sensitivity, and hold promise as a measure of OC symptoms in clinical and research settings.

Exploring Professional Help Seeking in Practicing Muslim Women with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Washing Subtype in Australia

“…The DOCS has been shown to be a valid and reliable assessment of OCD symptom dimension severity across clinical populations (Abramowitz et al 2010). The DOCS has excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.90; Abramowitz et al 2010). …”

“…Abramowitz et al 2010) is a 20-item self-report measure that assesses the severity of four OCD symptom dimensions (contamination, responsibility for harm and mistakes, symmetry/ordering, and unacceptable thoughts) on a scale of 0 to 4 (total scores ranges from 0 to 80) with the clinical cut-off score of 21 for OCD. The DOCS has been shown to be a valid and reliable assessment of OCD symptom dimension severity across clinical populations (Abramowitz et al 2010). The DOCS has excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.90; Abramowitz et al 2010).…”

Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of the Vancouver Obsessional-Compulsive Inventory Inventory (VOCI) in Iranian Non-Clinical Sample

“…As Gönner et al (2010) Another major problem with VOCI and other non-dimensional measures as Abramowitz et al (2010) indicate is that "these measures have a number of important drawbacks that detract from their ability to provide a time efficient, empirically consistent, and conceptually clear assessment of OC symptom severity" (p. 181). Based on such an evaluation they have introduced Dimensional Obsessive-Compulsive Scale.…”

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

“…Factor analytic studies have consistently identified five subgroups of symptoms: (a) contamination obsessions and washing/cleaning compulsions; (b) obsessions about responsibility for causing harm or making mistakes and checking compulsions; (c) obsessions about order and symmetry and ordering/arranging compulsions; (d) repugnant obsessional thoughts concerning sex, religion and violence along with mental compulsive rituals and other covert neutralizing strategies, and (e) hoarding (Abramowitz et al, 2010;Leckman et al,1997;Mataix-Cols et al, 2005). Some suggest that hoarding should be considered a distinct disorder from OCD, with its own diagnostic criteria in the next edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) (Pertusa et al, 2010;Leckman et al, 2010).…”