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A13 The Skin Picking Scale (SPS) : Screening Questionnaires and Scales

The document presents The Skin Picking Scale (SPS), a 6-item measure of skin picking symptoms and behaviors. The SPS assesses the frequency and intensity of urges to pick skin, time spent picking skin, interference with social or work activities due to picking, distress associated with picking, and avoidance of activities due to picking. Scores on the SPS range from 0-24, with a score of 7 or higher indicating a potential skin picking disorder. The SPS can be used as both a screening tool and to assess improvement of skin picking symptoms with treatment over time.

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870 views1 page

A13 The Skin Picking Scale (SPS) : Screening Questionnaires and Scales

The document presents The Skin Picking Scale (SPS), a 6-item measure of skin picking symptoms and behaviors. The SPS assesses the frequency and intensity of urges to pick skin, time spent picking skin, interference with social or work activities due to picking, distress associated with picking, and avoidance of activities due to picking. Scores on the SPS range from 0-24, with a score of 7 or higher indicating a potential skin picking disorder. The SPS can be used as both a screening tool and to assess improvement of skin picking symptoms with treatment over time.

Uploaded by

gustavo lucero
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Screening questionnaires and scales    263

A13 The Skin Picking Scale (SPS)

Instructions: For each item, pick the one answer which best describes the past week. If you have been having
ups and downs, try to estimate an average for the past week. Please be sure to read all answers in each group
before making your choice.
1. FREQUENCY OF URGES 0 = No urges
How often do you feel the urge to 1 = Mild, occasionally experience urges to skin pick, less than 1 hr/day
pick your skin? 2 = Moderate, often experience urges to skin pick, 1–3 hrs/day
3 = Severe, very often experience urges to skin pick, greater than 3 and up
to 8 hrs/day
4 = Extreme, constantly or almost always have an urge to skin pick
2. INTENSITY OF URGES 0 = Minimal or none
How intense or “strong” are the 1 = Mild
urges to pick your skin? 2 = Moderate
3 = Severe
4 = Extreme
3. TIME SPENT ENGAGED IN SKIN 0 = None
PICKING 1 = Mild, spend less than 1 hr/day picking my skin, or occasional skin
How much time do you spend picking.
picking your skin? How frequently 2 = Moderate, spend 1–3 hrs/day picking my skin, or frequent skin picking.
does it occur? How much longer 3 = Severe, spend more than 3 and up to 8 hrs/day picking my skin, or
than most people does it take you very frequent skin picking.
to complete routine activities 4 = Extreme, spend more than 8 hrs/day picking my skin, or near constant
because of your picking? skin picking.
4. INTERFERENCE DUE TO SKIN 0 = None
PICKING 1 = Mild, slight interference with social or occupational activities but
How much does your skin picking overall performance not impaired.
interfere with your social or work 2 = Moderate, definite interference with social or occupational
(or role) functioning? (If currently performance, but still manageable.
not working determine how much 3 = Severe, causes substantial impairment in social or occupational
your performance would be performance.
affected if you were employed.) 4 = Extreme, incapacitating.
5. DISTRESS ASSOCIATED WITH 0 = None
SKIN PICKING 1 = Mild, only slightly anxious if skin picking prevented, or only slight
How much distress do you anxiety during skin picking.
experience as a result of your skin 2 = Moderate, anxiety would mount but remain manageable if skin picking
picking? How would you feel if prevented, or anxiety increases to manageable levels during skin picking.
prevented from picking your skin? 3 = Severe, prominent and very disturbing increase in anxiety if skin
How anxious would you become? picking is interrupted, or prominent and very disturbing increase in anxiety
during skin picking.
4 = Extreme, incapacitating anxiety from any intervention aimed at
modifying activity, or incapacitating anxiety develops during skin picking.
6. AVOIDANCE 0 = None
Have you been avoiding doing 1 = Mild, occasional avoidance in social or work settings.
anything, going any place, or 2 = Moderate, frequent avoidance in social or work settings
being with anyone because of 3 = Severe, very frequent avoidance in social or work settings.
your skin picking? If yes, then how 4 = Extreme, avoid all social and work settings as a result of the skin
much do you avoid? picking.

Source: Keuthen et al. J Psychosom Res 2001; 50: 337–41. Adapted with permission of Elsevier.

The Skin Picking Scale (SPS) is a 6-item measure of skin picking symptoms, with scores ranging
from 0–24. The SPS can be used as a screening measure. A score of ≥7 is highly suspicious for a
skin picking disorder. In addition, the SPS can be used at each visit to assess improvement of
symptoms with treatment.

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