A Self-Report Instrument for the Assessment of Dermatillomania: Reliability and Validity of the German Skin Picking Scale-Revised

At least since the introduction of the official diagnosis Excoriation (Skin-Picking) Disorder in the DSM-5 [1], dermatillomania is an important and growing field of research. Despite the high importance currently a huge lack of German assessment instruments exists. Aim of the present study was the examination of the psychometric properties of the German translation of the Skin Picking Scale-Revised [2]. For this purpose an open online study has been conducted. The analysis of N = 2 065 data sets indicated a high internal consistency with Cronbachs Alpha being 0.93. Furthermore positive associations with the 3 problem areas psychological impairment, general physical condition, social problems as well as with reduced competence skills, general life satisfaction and social support indicate a good constructvalidity. Another sign for validity is a significant effect in terms of gender: As expected women showed higher skin picking scores than men. Overall the results of the present study suggest that the German version of the SPS-R can be seen as a reliable and valid instrument for the assessment of dermatillomania.