Validation of the Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale for Adults in South Korea

BACKGROUND: The Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale measures the cognitive, affective, and behavioral features of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 somatic symptom disorder. This study examined the psychometric properties of the Korean version of the Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale in a community sample of Korean adults. METHODS: The sample included 349 Korean adults (71.6% female (n = 250); mean age, 22.6 SD = 4.8). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was performed for construct validity, Pearson r correlations were used to assess convergent validity, and internal consistency was calculated by Cronbach’s alpha coefficients and item-total correlation. RESULTS: Findings of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that the Korean version of the Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale had a modified unifactorial structure. Indices of convergent validity, test–retest reliability, and internal consistency reliability of the Korean version of the Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale were acceptable. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the Korean version of the Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale is suitable for assessing the cognitive, affective, and behavioral features of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 somatic symptom disorder in Korean adults in community settings.