Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory (PTCI)

E.B. Foa, A. Ehlers, D.M. Clark, D.F. Tolin, S.M Orsillo (1999). The Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory (PTCI): Development and Validation. Psychological Assessment, Vol 11, No. 3, 303-314

Not all trauma victims develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and many who initially develop it recover over time, while others develop persistent PTSD. This quiz evaluates specific thought patterns that people sometimes have after having been traumatized. Please read each statement carefully and chose how much you agree or disagree with it, from "Totally disagree" to "Totally agree". There are no right or wrong answers to these statements.

  1. The event happened because of the way I acted.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  2. I can't trust that I will do the right thing.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  3. I am a weak person.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  4. I will not be able to control my anger and will do something terrible.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  5. I can't deal with even the slightest upset.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  6. I used to be a happy person but now I am always miserable.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  7. People can't be trusted.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  8. I have to be on guard all the time.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  9. I feel dead inside.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  10. You can never know who will harm you.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  11. I have to be especially careful because you never know what can happen next.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  12. I am inadequate.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  13. I will not be able to control my emotions, and something terrible will happen.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  14. If I think about the event, I will not be able to handle it.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  15. The event happened to me because of the sort of person I am.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  16. My reactions since the event mean that I am going crazy.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  17. I will never be able to feel normal emotions again.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  18. The world is a dangerous place.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  19. Somebody else would have stopped the event from happening.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  20. I have permanently changed for the worse.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  21. I feel like an object, not like a person.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  22. Somebody else would not have gotten into this situation.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  23. I can't rely on other people.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  24. I feel isolated and set apart from others.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  25. I have no future.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  26. I can't stop bad things from happening to me.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  27. People are not what they seem.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  28. My life has been destroyed by the trauma.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  29. There is something wrong with me as a person.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  30. My reactions since the event show that I am a lousy coper.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  31. There is something about me that made the event happen.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  32. I will not be able to tolerate my thoughts about the event, and I will fall apart.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  33. I feel like I don't know myself anymore.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  34. You never know when something terrible will happen.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  35. I can't rely on myself.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree
  36. Nothing good can happen to me anymore.
    Totally disagree                 Totally agree