Validation of the Brief Negative Symptom Scale in Korean patients with schizophrenia

Abstract

Introduction The Brief Negative Symptom Scale (BNSS) was developed based on the current consensus on negative symptoms. We validated the Korean version of the BNSS (K-BNSS) and explored the factor structure of negative symptoms among 173 Koreans with schizophrenia. Methods Clinical interviews and neurocognitive assessments were administered to evaluate the factor structure, validity, and reliability of the K-BNSS. Results The five-factor model of the K-BNSS showed excellent reliability and validity. Discussion Our findings confirm that the K-BNSS is a promising instrument for assessing negative symptoms of schizophrenia, and that negative symptoms are best conceptualized in the form of five domains.