Turkish Journal of Psychiatry

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The Validity and Reliability Study of the Dokuz Eylül Theory of Mind Index (DEZİKÖ) in Patients with Schizophrenia Banu DEĞİRMENCİOĞLU, Köksal ALPTEKİN, Berna Binnur AKDEDE, Nur ERDİL, Ahmet AKTENER, Atıl MANTAR, Halis ULAŞ 2018 29(3): 193-201
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Objective: Although a lack of a comprehensive theory of mind
(ToM) index has been indicated frequently in studies of schizophrenia
spectrum disorders, there is no valid and reliable index to assess ToM,
which represents the ability to attribute mental states to other people.
The purpose of this study is to examine the validity and reliability of the
“Dokuz Eylul Theory of Mind Index” (DEZİKÖ) in healthy volunteers
and in patients with schizophrenia, which is the first Turkish-language
ToM index, developed using examples in the ToM literature.
Method: The study sample consisted of a total of 286 participants,
including 89 patients with schizophrenia who had been diagnosed by
DSM-IV and 197 healthy volunteers. Sociodemographic data form and
DEZİKÖ were administered to all participants. Empathic Skill Index–B
Form (EBÖ-B) and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS)
were administered to the patients.
Results: In healthy volunteers, internal consistency coefficient of
DEZİKÖ was 0.64; inter-rater reliability was 0.99 (p<0.0001) and testretest
reliability was 0.90 (p<0.01). The patient group had a positive
significant correlation between DEZİKÖ and EBÖ-B (r=0.43, p<0.05).
Furthermore, it was shown that healthy volunteers and patients with
schizophrenia can be distinguished by using DEZİKÖ (t(285)=8.74,
p<0.01). The results of factor analysis with principal components
analysis in the healthy volunteer group verified that DEZİKÖ has 3
factor groups.
Conclusion: These findings indicated that DEZİKÖ, the first ToM
index in the Turkish language, has acceptable validity and reliability
values in healthy volunteers and in patients with schizophrenia.