Childhood Trauma, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Dissociation: Preliminary Validation of a Five-Factor Model of PTSD Using the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity Scale–Forensic Version (EGS-F) in Women Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence

Violence is widely recognized as a critical public health issue, with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among the possible psychological consequences. Exposure to high levels of interpersonal trauma significantly increases the risk of developing PTSD. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Forensic Version of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity Scale (EGS-F) in a sample of Ecuadorian women. Specifically, we assessed a five-factor model to examine whether the dissociation subdimension proposed by the EGS-F functions as a complementary component in the assessment of PTSD and examined the association between childhood trauma and PTSD symptomatology. A nonprobabilistic convenience sample of 298 Ecuadorian women ( M age = 35.84, SD = 11.66) who had experienced intimate partner violence participated in this study. Confirmatory factor analyses supported both first- and second-order five-factor models, indicating satisfactory model fit. Structural equation modeling (SEM) further demonstrated a significant association between childhood trauma and PTSD symptom severity. Findings support the reliability and validity of the EGS-F and suggest its utility for assessing PTSD symptoms in forensic and clinical settings within the Ecuadorian context. The findings also highlight the importance of cross-cultural validation of PTSD assessment tools. However, further research is needed to refine and validate the simulation subscale.