Initial validation of a transdiagnostic compulsivity questionnaire: the Cambridge–Chicago Compulsivity Trait Scale
Open Access
- 7 May 2018
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in CNS Spectrums
- Vol. 23 (5), 340-346
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s1092852918000810
Abstract
Compulsivity refers to a tendency toward repetitive habitual behaviors. Multiple disorders have compulsive symptoms at their core, including substance use disorders, gambling disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The aim of this study was to validate a scale for the objective, transdiagnostic measurement of compulsivity. The 15-item Cambridge–Chicago Compulsivity Trait Scale (CHI-T) was developed for the rapid but comprehensive measurement of compulsivity. Adults aged 18–29y were recruited using media advertisements, and completed the CHI-T in addition to demographic, clinical, and cognitive assessment. The validity and psychometric properties of the scale were quantified. A total of 112 participants completed the study. The scale yielded a normal distribution with very few outliers. It had excellent psychometric properties, with high internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha=0.8), and excellent convergent validity against gold-standard assessments of compulsive symptoms (each p<0.001 for gambling disorder, obsessive-compulsive, and substance use disorder symptoms). Total scores on the scale correlated significantly with less risk-adjustment on the decision-making task (rigid response style), and divergent validity was confirmed against other cognitive domains (response inhibition and executive planning). The above significant findings withstood Bonferroni correction. Factor analysis suggested the existence of two latent factors: one related mainly to reward-seeking and the need for perfection, and the other relating to anxiolytic/soothing features of compulsivity. The CHI-T, a scale designed to measure transdiagnostic compulsivity, appears to show excellent psychometric properties in a normative population and merits further investigation in the context of clinical patient populations, including in treatment trials.Keywords
This publication has 21 references indexed in Scilit:
- Toward the future of psychiatric diagnosis: the seven pillars of RDoCBMC Medicine, 2013
- Epidemiology of substance use disordersHuman Genetics, 2012
- Selective decision-making deficits in at-risk gamblersPsychiatry Research, 2011
- Research Domain Criteria (RDoC): Toward a New Classification Framework for Research on Mental DisordersAmerican Journal of Psychiatry, 2010
- Converging Evidence for a Fronto-Basal-Ganglia Network for Inhibitory Control of Action and Cognition: Figure 1.Journal of Neuroscience, 2007
- NORMATIVE DATA AND A SHORT FORM OF THE BARRATT IMPULSIVENESS SCALEInternational Journal of Neuroscience, 2007
- Neural systems of reinforcement for drug addiction: from actions to habits to compulsionNature Neuroscience, 2005
- Decision making in pathological gambling: A comparison between pathological gamblers, alcohol dependents, persons with Tourette syndrome, and normal controlsCognitive Brain Research, 2005
- Revision of the Padua Inventory of obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms: Distinctions between worry, obsessions, and compulsionsBehaviour Research and Therapy, 1996
- The Application of Electronic Computers to Factor AnalysisEducational and Psychological Measurement, 1960