REVIEWS

Research Advances in Psychosomatic Symptom Assessment Tools

  • DENG Xiaoyi ,
  • YUAN Yonggui
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  • 1School of Humanities, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China;
    2Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, Zhongda Hospital Affiliated to Southeast University, Nanjing 210009, China

Online published: 2026-03-31

Abstract

Psychosomatic medicine, as an emerging interdisciplinary field, focuses on the interactions among psychological, social, and biological factors in the onset and development of diseases, and has gained importance in modern medicine. In clinical practice, assessment tools are important for the diagnosis of psychosomatic disorders and mainly include interview tools and self-report scales. Interview tools such as the Diagnostic Criteria for Psychosomatic Research (DCPR) and its revised version (DCPR-R) have high diagnostic sensitivity, but their structured interview procedures are relatively complex and time-consuming and require substantial professional training, which makes them difficult to promote on a large scale in general hospitals. Self-report scales include specific assessment tools for psychosomatic symptoms like the Psychosomatic Symptom Checklist (PSC), Children's Psychosomatic Symptom Checklist (C-PSC), Chinese Psychosomatic Health Scale (CPSHS), Psychosomatic Symptoms Questionnaire (PSS), Psychosomatic Symptom Scale (PSSS), and Brief Psychosomatic Symptom Scale (BPSS). These tools offer greater structural specificity, stronger theoretical relevance, and higher differentiative ability for diseases. However, they have not been widely used clinically. In contrast, general mental health assessment tools, covering somatic symptoms, emotional symptoms, and comprehensive assessment scales, are widely used because of their convenience and accessibility. However, they show limited specificity in identifying psychosomatic symptoms. This article summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of the aforementioned tools by analyzing their psychometric properties and cultural adaptability, and examines their applicability across different medical settings and populations, aiming to provide a reference for clinical practice and research. Future assessment tools should be developed and refined based on international psychometric standards, in response to national health policies, and through the integration of multimodal assessment approaches and AI technology.

Cite this article

DENG Xiaoyi , YUAN Yonggui . Research Advances in Psychosomatic Symptom Assessment Tools[J]. Psychological Communications, 2025 , 8(4) : 322 -329 . DOI: 10.12100/j.issn.2096-5494.225044

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