Validation of the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL-5) in Colombian Adolescent Victims of Adversity

The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL) is the most widely used questionnaire for detecting PTSD symptoms in clinical and research settings. The PCL-5 has multidimensional formulations with 2, 6, and 7 factor models as alternatives to the DSM-5 four-factor model. This study aimed to perform a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to evaluate the parsimony of five models of the PCL-5. In a sample of 278 Colombian adolescents who were victims of adversity, the PCL-5, the ETISF-SR traumatic experiences scale, and the YSR/11-18 clinical symptom report for adolescents were applied to analyze five PTSD models with 1, 4, 6, and 7 factors through CFA. Although all models showed moderate to good fit indices, the hybrid model demonstrated the best performance (RMSEA=0,0499; CFI=0,984; TLI=0,978; GFI=0,994). All models had good general and factor-specific internal consistencies for ordinal alpha and omega (infinity(ord_G)=0,93 and infinity(ord_F)=0,62- 0,83). The PCL-5 exhibited high correlations with the ETISF-SR, particularly with the Emotional Abuse dimension (rho=0,599). Regarding the YSR, all clinical dimensions correlated positively with the PCL-5, except for the "criminal behaviors" subscale, which had a moderate correlation with the PCL-5 externalizing behaviors factor (rho=0,397).