Brief Description
The Severity of Dissociative Symptoms—Child Age 11–17 (DSM-5 Dis-C) is an 8 item self-report questionnaire designed to assess dissociative experiences in children and adolescents. Adapted from the adult Brief Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES-B), this version was developed for use in children and adolescents aged 11 to 17 years as part of the DSM-5 cross-cutting symptom measures. It evaluates the severity and frequency of dissociative symptoms—such as depersonalization, derealization, memory gaps, and a sense of detachment from self or surroundings—over the past two weeks. For example, one item asks respondents to rate the frequency of experiencing "People, objects, or the world around me seem strange or unreal." It is intended for use by clinicians and researchers to aid in screening, monitoring, and clinical assessment of dissociative symptoms in youth, rather than for diagnostic purposes.
Assessment Administration Type
Parent/caregiver report
Number of questions
13
Age Range for Administration
11-17
Recommended Frequency of Administration
Every two weeks or as clinically indicated
Summary of Scoring and Interpretations
The DSM-5 Dis-C includes 8 items. Respondents rate items on a five-point Likert ranging from “not at all” (0) to “nearly every day” (4). The total score is generated by summing all items. If preferred, the total score can be divided by the total number of questions (8) to generate an average total score. The measure provides a continuous severity score, with higher scores indicating greater dissociative symptomatology.
Total score | Level of Dissociative Symptom Severity |
0-7 | None |
8-15 | Mild |
16-23 | Moderate |
24-32 | Severe |
While the total scores are useful for tracking progress, the measure does not have empirically established clinical cutoffs.
Blueprint Adjustments
N/A
Clinical Considerations
Estimated completion time: 3-5 minutes
The DSM-5 Dis-C is intended to help clinicians track symptom severity and change over time or to identify areas for further assessment within the broader DSM-5 Level 2 cross-cutting framework.
The measure is designed to screen and monitor the severity of dissociative symptoms in children and adolescents aged 11–17, not to establish a diagnosis.
It may be useful in settings where trauma, stress, or dissociative symptoms are suspected (e.g., after abuse, accidents, or severe stressors).
Dissociative symptoms may overlap with or mimic attention problems, anxiety, or psychotic-like experiences; clinicians should differentiate between these.
Citation
DES-B (Dalenberg C, Carlson E, 2010) modified for DSM-5 by C. Dalenberg and E. Carlson.
Relevant Articles + Further Resources
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