Measuring Distress Tolerance: Development And Validation Of The Multidimensional Distress Tolerance Scale

Previous research has identified distress tolerance (DT) as a transdiagnostic vulnerability factor with clinical utility, though varying conceptualizations of DT have impeded effective communication about the construct across research. To address this gap in the literature, Zvolensky et al. (2010) proposed a hierarchical model consisting of five distinct but related domains that have been shown to be distinct in empirical tests. However, at this time, there is no efficient method of measuring the DT domains. Thus, Bardeen et al. (2013) posited a short, multidimensional measure of DT may help to advance DT research. Results of Study 1 demonstrated, through principal components analysis, four distinct factors comprised of four of the dimensions originally proposed by Zvolensky et al. (2010) with one dimension falling short of previously established guidelines. The resulting Multidimensional Distress Tolerance Scale (MDTS) was composed of 20 items with five items from each of the four DT dimensions included in the model. The second study confirmed the four-factor hierarchical structure of the MDTS using confirmatory factor analysis. Results of Study 2 also provided initial evidence of adequate psychometric properties for the MDTS. These studies represent vital steps in improving the efficiency and reliability of measuring DT for future research.