The Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Emotional Reactivity and Numbing Scale

Recent research has highlighted the role of hyperresponsivity and numbing of emotions in posttraumatic stress disorder. Preliminary research suggests that emotional numbing symptoms impact the development, maintenance, and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder. However, research in this area has been hindered, in part, due to the absence of a psychometrically sound, conceptually based measure of emotional numbing. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the Emotional Reactivity and Numbing Scale in a sample of 92 trauma-exposed men and women veterans. Results provide preliminary support for the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, convergent, and discriminant validity of the measure. Implications for future research are discussed.