The prevalence and phenomenology of dissociative symptoms is being investigated in a variety of psychiatric disorders using the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES), a self-administered questionnaire developed and validated by the intramural research program. The DES has excellent reliability and validity and has proved extremely useful in screening for misdiagnosed dissociative disorder patients. It is currently in use by scores of investigators around the country. Current NIMH, IRP research using the DES includes: 1) a large-scale multicenter study with over 1000 patients; 2) collection of data on dissociative disorder, anxiety/phobic disorder, affective and eating disorder patients involved in IRP research programs. Recent findings indicate that there appears to be a direct relationship between high scores on the DES and propensity for self-harm and suicidal behavior.
