Studies have reported high rates of childhood abuse in people with
psychiatric illness. This study examined whether dissociative symptoms
are specific to patients with histories of abuse. Ninety-eight female
psychiatric inpatients completed self-report instruments that focused
on childhood history of trauma, dissociative symptoms, and psychiatric
symptoms in general. Sixty-three percent of the subjects reported
physical and/or sexual abuse. Eighty-three percent had dissociative
symptom scores above the median score of normal adults, and 24% had
scores at or above the median score of patients with posttraumatic
stress disorder. Subjects with a history of childhood abuse reported
higher levels of dissociative symptoms than those who did not.