Comparison of Self-Assessment of Premenstrual Symptoms with Scores on the Modified Menstrual Distress Questionnaire

Premenstrual symptoms were assessed in a sample of 267 women (M age 31.4 yr.) using a single self-identification question and the modified Menstrual Distress Questionnaire of Clare and Wiggins. The self-identification question asked to what degree the women experienced premenstrual symptoms. The responses were 34 (13%) for none, 116 (43%) for slight, 99 (37%) for moderate, and 18 (7%) for severe. The mean score on the questionnaire was 23.5 (50=17.5). Correlations indicated significant relationships between self-identification and questionnaire scores (rho = .76, p < .001). When the women were classified according to Clare's (1983) criterion, almost a third of them assessed their symptoms differently, i.e., while they classified themselves as “nonsufferers” on the self-identification question, their responses on the questionnaire identified them as “sufferers.”