engleski

Measuring and conceptualizing PTSD following childbirth: Validation of the City Birth Trauma Scale

Objective: City Birth Trauma Scale is a recently developed scale specifically designed for evaluation of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following childbirth based on the DSM–5 criteria (Ayers, Wright, & Thornton, 2018). Previous studies showed a two-factor structure of PTSD symptoms in postpartum women ; however, more complex models were not tested. This study aimed to validate the Croatian version of the City Birth Trauma Scale and determine the latent factor structure of postpartum PTSD. Method: In a cross-sectional study, 603 women completed online questionnaires comprising the City Birth Trauma Scale, Impact of Event Scale–Revised (IES-R), Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), and the anxiety subscale from the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Results: Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the bifactor model of birth-related symptoms and general symptoms had an excellent fit to the data. Both subscales and the total scale showed high internal consistency (α = .92). Convergent and divergent validity testing showed high validity, especially for birth-related symptoms. Discriminant validity was confirmed with primiparous women and women who gave birth by instrumental vaginal delivery and emergency caesarean section having significantly higher scores on birth-related symptoms, but not on general symptoms, suggesting high discriminant validity of the birth-related symptoms subscale. Conclusions: The City Birth Trauma Scale is a reliable and valid measure. Both total scale score and subscale scores can be calculated. It is highly recommended for use in postpartum population.

PTSD ; childbirth ; scale ; validity ; factor structure ; bifactor

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