Measurement invariance of the Spanish University of California at Los Angeles Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition-brief form in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria.

Abstract

Objective: Natural disasters are a salient source of traumatic exposures for many youth, although not all youth exposed to these traumatic experiences go on to develop posttraumatic stress symptoms or other maladaptive reactions. Given the low resource context and high need for psychological support engendered by natural disasters globally, efficient, evidentiary, culturally appropriate tools for assessing risk are needed to effectively identify youth most in need of services.

Method: The present study used a sample of 96,108 Puerto Rican youth collected in 2018, 5-9 months after Hurricane Maria in 2017, to examine the psychometric properties of a Spanish translation of the University of California Los Angeles Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index-Brief Form (RI-5-BF). Participants completed measures of hurricane exposure, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and depressive symptoms.

Results: Results indicated a strong fit between the data and the four-factor Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition, model of posttraumatic stress disorder (root-mean-square error of approximation = .030, 90% confidence interval [.029, .031], Tucker-Lewis index = .976, comparative fit index = .983) and multigroup factor analysis indicated measurement invariance by gender at the scalar level. Normative values for this population by grade and gender were also estimated by examining the descriptive statistics of participants' responses and convergent validity analysis indicated a strong relationship between the University of California Los Angeles Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index-Brief Form total score and a measure of depressive symptoms (r = .64).

Conclusions: The implications of psychometric research for improving global efforts to triage and respond to psychological distress in the aftermath of natural disasters are discussed, with an emphasis on the critical need for psychometric research to diversify through development and adaptation of instruments in global populations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).