Development and validation of the Dimensional Inventory of Stress and Trauma Across the Lifespan (DISTAL): A novel assessment tool to facilitate the dimensional study of psychobiological sequelae of exposure to adversity

Decades of research underscore the profound impact of adversity on brain and behavioral development. Recent theoretical models have highlighted the importance of considering specific features of adversity that may have dissociable effects at distinct developmental timepoints. However, existing measu...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Developmental psychobiology 2023-05, Vol.65 (4), p.e22372-n/a
Main Authors: Cohodes, Emily M., McCauley, Sarah, Pierre, Jasmyne C., Hodges, H. R., Haberman, Jason T., Santiuste, Isabel, Rogers, Marisa K., Wang, Jenny, Mandell, Jeffrey D., Gee, Dylan G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adolescence
adversity
Brain
childhood
frontolimbic circuitry
infancy
Longevity
multidimensional
Retrospective Studies
trauma screening
traumatic stress
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Decades of research underscore the profound impact of adversity on brain and behavioral development. Recent theoretical models have highlighted the importance of considering specific features of adversity that may have dissociable effects at distinct developmental timepoints. However, existing measures do not query these dimensions in sufficient detail to support the proliferation of this approach. The Dimensional Inventory of Stress and Trauma Across the Lifespan (DISTAL) was developed with the aim to thoroughly and retrospectively assess the timing, severity (of exposure and reaction), type, persons involved, controllability, predictability, threat, deprivation, proximity, betrayal, and discrimination inherent in an individual's exposure to adversity. Here, we introduce this instrument, present descriptive statistics drawn from a sample of N = 187 adults who completed the DISTAL, and provide initial information about its psychometric properties. This novel measure facilitates the expansion of research focused on assessing the relative impact of exposure to key dimensions of adversity on the brain and behavior across development.
ISSN:0012-1630
1098-2302
DOI:10.1002/dev.22372