742 Assessment Measures
Clinician-Rated Dimensions of
Psychosis Symptom Severity
As described in the chapter “Schizophrenia  Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders,”
psychotic disorders are hetero geneous, and symptom severity  can predict important as-
pects of the illness, such as the degree of cogn itive and/or neurobiological deficits. Dimen-
sional assessments capture meaningful variation in the severity of symptoms, which may
help with treatment planning, prognostic decision-making, and research on pathophysi-
ological mechanisms. The Clinician-Rated Dimensions of Psychosis Symptom Severity
provides scales for the dimensional assessment  of the primary symptoms of psychosis, in-
cluding hallucinations, delusions, disorganiz ed speech, abnormal psychomotor behavior,
and negative symptoms. A scale for the dimensional assessment of cognitive impairment
is also included. Many individuals with psyc hotic disorders have im pairments in a range
of cognitive domains, which predict functional abilities. In addition, scales for dimensional
assessment of depression and mania are provided , which may alert clinicians to mood pa-
thology. The severity of mood symptoms in psychosis has prognostic value and guides
treatment. 
The Clinician-Rated Dimensions of Psychosis Symptom Severity is an 8-item measure
that may be completed by the clinician at the time of the clinical assessment. Each item asks
the clinician to rate the severity of each sy mptom as experienced by the individual during
the past 7 days.
Scoring and Interpretation
Each item on the measure is rated on a 5-poin t scale (0=none; 1=equivocal; 2=present, but
mild; 3=present and moderate; and 4=present and severe) with a sy mptom-specific defi-