Cognitive Distortion Scales
(formerly the Cognitive Symptoms Scales)

This test is available from Psychological Assessment Resources.

The 40-item CDS was engineered to be brief, easily understandable to the average mental health client, to have modern psychometric properties, and to be applicable to a variety of clinical problems and etiologies. It measures five types of cognitive symptoms or distortions found among mental health clients and/or those who have experienced interpersonal victimization: Self-criticism, Self-blame, Helplessness, Hopelessness, and Preoccupation with Danger.  CDS scales are psychometrically reliable and have construct, predictive, and convergent validity in the standardization and validity samples. Scales are normed separately for males and females (total standardization N = 620), and can be expressed as T-scores. Results of readability analysis (Flesch-Kincaid method) indicate that a minimal (fifth-grade) reading ability is required for respondents to understand and complete the CDS.  

Format

The CDS materials consist of the professional manual, a test booklet, and a profile form. The cover page of the item booklet contains instructions for completing the CDS. The next two pages contain an area for recording basic demographic information, followed by the 40 items of the CDS. Each item is rated according to its frequency of occurrence over the prior month, using a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (Never) to 5 (Very often). Respondents indicate their responses to these items directly on the carbonless test booklet, which is designed to be easily hand-scored by the examiner. The profile sheet allows conversion of raw scores to T scores according to sex of respondent. A graph of the profile can be drawn to visually portray the respondent's scores relative to the scores of the general population.

Scales of the CDS

Self-criticism (SC) (alpha=.93)
Measures the tendency to criticize or devalue oneself, both internally and to others. Although this construct is usually labeled "low esteem," it is referred to in the CDS as Self-criticism in order to more directly capture the behavioral aspects of this thinking pattern. Individuals with clinical elevations on this scale are likely to view themselves in an especially negative light and to report repetitive negative thoughts about their intrinsic badness or unacceptability. In some individuals, this self-perception style may manifest as frank self-hatred or self-disgust, suggesting considerable anger that is at least partially directed inward. Individuals with high SC scores often have experienced, at minimum, some level of excessive criticism or devaluation as children, although this is not inevitably so. In addition, some individuals with histories of childhood physical or sexual abuse may have elevated scores on SC. Alternatively, or in addition, individuals who have committed acts in adulthood that are perceived as especially abhorrent or deviant may produce high SC scores.

Self-blame (SB) (alpha=.92)
Evaluates the extent to which the respondent blames himself or herself for negative, unwanted events that have transpired in his or her life. Respondents with elevated SB scores tend to make negative internal attributions regarding the meaning of adverse life experiences, believing that they are personally responsible for negative outcomes. Often, such attributions will not appear to be especially reality-based, such as blaming oneself for an assault or victimization experience that was out of one's control. In other instances, SB will be elevated because the individual correctly perceives some responsibility for an act that occurred against him/her, but nevertheless may be elevated beyond the actual level of responsibility present. Elevated SB also may be found in depressed individuals who generally overattribute negative responsibility as part of their cognitive-emotional state.

Helplessness (HLP) (alpha= .97)
Measures the perception of being unable to control or influence important, typically negative, aspects of one's life. Individuals with high HLP scores may be especially likely to assume that their efforts to change an unwanted or problematic situation will be unsuccessful, sometimes leading to passivity or avoidance in the face of challenge or danger. The assumed inability to influence negative events in one's life is often projected in to the future, hence the high correlation between the Helplessness and Hopelessness scales of the CDS. This combination may be especially relevant to individuals who are currently being victimized or maltreated in a sexual/romantic or occupational relationship, wherein high HLP (and/or HOP) may result in a perceived inability to change or leave such relationships.

Hopelessness (HOP) (alpha=.94 )
Measures the extent to which the respondent believes that the future is bleak and that he or she is destined to suffer or fail. Those with elevated scores on the HOP scale are often characterized as pessimistic, and may be especially likely to avoid (or fail to persevere in) activities that require an expectation of a potentially positive future outcome. High HOP scores are usually suggestive of some level of dysthymia or depression. Hopelessness is correlated with suicidality in the normative and validity samples of the CDS and in the suicide literature. This may be due to the tendency for high HOP responders to assume that their current pain or distress is likely to continue indefinitely, thereby motivating escape at any cost.

Preoccupation with Danger (PWD) (alpha=.89)
Evaluates the respondent's tendency to view the world as a dangerous place, especially in the interpersonal domain. Although not inevitably so, the normative and validity studies indicates that those with high levels of PWD often have experienced interpersonal victimization in childhood or later in life, and may suffer some symptoms of posttraumatic stress. Anxiety also is a symptomatic correlate of high PWD. Individuals with elevated PWD scores typically are hypervigilant to danger and may assume that objectively benign circumstances or events contain risk of emotional or physical injury. This overevaluation of danger may produce a tendency to avoid interpersonal challenges or perceived vulnerability.