(PS9-A3) Initial Validation of the Specific Phobia Severity Scales Using Expert Input and an Online Sample

Although measures exist to assess specific phobia (SP) severity, they tend to be narrow in focus, long, or unvalidated. There is a need for a brief, validated scale to assess the severity of any type of SP. The Specific Phobia Severity Scales (SPSS) were developed for this purpose. This study is an initial validation of the SPSS, which assesses for fear and avoidance across a variety of phobias (Pt. I), as well as severity of the most severe phobia (Pt. II). Following initial development, 24 psychologists with an average of 12.3 years (SD=6.9) post-PhD in the field of anxiety disorders provided quantitative and qualitative feedback for Pt. II. Based on this, 2 of 10 items below a threshold of relevance were removed. Adult online participants (n=250) residing in the United States or Canada were recruited from Amazon’s MTurk to complete the SPSS and 11 other measures in January 2022. Data from 220 participants were analyzed (88%) and 30 (12%) were excluded due to careless or incomplete responding. The final sample had a mean age of 37.6 years (SD=11.8), 81% of participants were White, 44% completed college or university, 70% were heterosexual, 63% were men, 37% were women, and among both genders, 17% identified as transgender. Two-tailed correlation analyses with 5,000 bootstrap samples were conducted. The three phobias endorsed most frequently on the SPSS were snakes (30%), dogs (15%), and blood or needles (11%). The internal consistencies of Pt. I & II of the SPSS were Cronbach’s α=.90 and .80, respectively. Pt. I of the SPSS significantly correlated with the Severity Measure for Specific Phobia (SMSP; r=.45, p< .001), two other general measures of specific phobia (r=.38-70, p< .001), and five phobia specific measures (r=.38-.57, p< .001). However, Pt. II of the SPSS did not significantly correlate with the SMSP (r=0.09, p=.25). Only 36% of respondents identified the same severe phobia across the SPSS Pt. II and SMSP, and the correlation was still not significant when restricted to matching phobias (r=.05, p=.69). The SPSS Pt. II significantly correlated with two other general measures of specific phobia (r=.26-.45, p≤.003) and one phobia-specific measure (r=.85, p< .001). Unexpectedly, SPSS Pt. I significantly correlated with measures of functional impairment and general symptom measures such as the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21; r=.73, p< .001) and the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ; r=.52, p< .001). Similarly, SPSS Pt. II significantly correlated with the DASS-21 (r=.24, p=.002) and the PSWQ (r=.26, p< .001). The SPSS is a new and brief measure to assess SP severity developed with expert input and tested in an online sample. The SPSS correlates as expected with other SP measures and other measures of functional impairment or general symptoms of anxiety and depression. As evidence-based interventions for SP such as CBT expand, particularly virtually during the pandemic, the SPSS represents an alternative measure that can be easily administered online for screening and treatment. Limitations of this study and next steps for further validation in other samples will be discussed.