The psychometric properties of the Persian version of the posttrauma risky behaviors questionnaire in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms

Despite the addition of a new diagnostic criterion indicating the degree of involvement in reckless or self-destructive behaviors for PTSD in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual - Fifth Edition, research evidence indicates that a reliable and valid tool for assessing and diagnosing it has not been found to exist in Persian.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the posttrauma risky behaviors questionnaire.

The current research was an applied survey study based on a test construction methodology, following the common principles and techniques of psychometrics in a correlational research design. The statistical population for this research included all people with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder in 2023 living in shiraz. A total of 520 participants (365 female and 155 male) were selected using the International Trauma Questionnaire (Cloitre et al., 2018) through convenience sampling Methods They then completed the Posttrauma Risky Behaviors Questionnaire (Contractor et al., 2020), the Self-Harm Inventory (Sanson et al., 1998), and the self-destructive behaviors questionnaire (Aghamohammadian Shearbaf et al., 2013). Data analysis was done using SPSS26 and AMOS26 software at a significance level of 0.05.

The confirmatory factorial analysis supported a one-factor model with desirable fit indices (X2/df= 3.239, GFI= 0.930, IFI= 0.924, CFI= 0.924, RMSEA= 0.066). Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the Posttrauma Risky Behaviors Questionnaire was 0.85. The self-destructive behaviors questionnaire (31 items; r= 0.01, p< 0.660) and the Self-Harm Inventory (22 items; r= 0.01,
p< 0.532) showed a positive and significant correlation with the Posttrauma Risky Behaviors Questionnaire.

Overall, the results of the present study provided evidence for the validity and reliability of the posttrauma risky behaviors questionnaire as a tool for comprehensive, brief, and one-dimensional assessment of reckless or self-destructive behaviors. Therefore, it can be used by researchers, therapists, and psychologists as a reliable and valid tool.