Centrality of Event Scale

TITLE OF THE PORTUGUESE VERSION

Escala de Centralidade do Acontecimento para Adolescentes

ORIGINAL VERSION

Berntsen, D., & Rubin, D. C. (2006)

PORTUGUESE VERSION

Matos, M., Pinto Gouveia, J., & Cunha, M. (2011)

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The CES assesses the extent to which a memory for a stressful event (in this case a shame experience reported by each participant) forms a reference point for personal identity and to attribution of meaning to other experiences in a person’s life. This self-report questionnaire consists of 20 items, rated on 5-point Likert scale (1-5), that measure three interdependent characteristics of a highly negative emotional event that load on to a single underlying factor: the extent to which the event is a central component of one’s personal identity (e.g., “I feel that this event has become part of my identity.”), is viewed as a landmark in one’s life story (e.g., “I feel that this event has become a central part of my life story.”) and acts as a reference point for inferences and attributions in everyday life (e.g., “This event has coloured the way I think and feel about other experiences.”).

REFERENCES

• Berntsen, D., & Rubin, D. C. (2006). The centrality of event scale: A measure of integrating a trauma into one’s identity and its relation to post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms. Behaviour research and therapy, 44, 219-231.doi:10.1016/j.brat.2005.01.009

• Cunha, M., Xavier, A., Matos, M., & Faria, D. (2015). O impacto das memórias de vergonha na adolescência: A escala de Centralidade do Acontecimento (CES). Análise Psicológica, 4, 425-438. doi:10.14417/ap.995 http://hdl.handle.net/10316/46875