The Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation

If you’re a clinician or researcher wanting to learn more about the diagnosis of pathological dissociation using an empirically validated and reliable instrument, then you’ve come to to the right place.

Most clinicians have received little or no training about dissociation and dissociative symptoms. This may lead them to fail to notice dissociative symptoms or to misclassify them in terms of a clinical diagnosis with which they are more familiar (e.g., depression, bipolar disorder, or psychosis). Questions about dissociative symptoms are absent from most standard clinical or psychological questionnaires and assessments. This makes the MID, a validated and reliable, 218-item self report inventory, an essential addition to clinical practice – especially when a clinician is serving client populations known to be at-risk for complex trauma. The MID is used by clinicians and researchers worldwide.

The MID, MID Analysis, and MID Interpretive Manual are free for use by trained mental health professionals and researchers seeking to better understand dissociation and dissociative processes from the experiencer’s point of view.

If you are a person concerned that they may be dealing with complex trauma or a dissociative disorder, then please consider seeking out a professional versed in the assessment and treatment of dissociation via the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation.

RECENT SITE UPDATES

15 April 2024: Canadian French translation of the MID questionnaire added.

15 February 2024: MID Materials Request form repaired.

18 January 2024: Dutch and European Portuguese translations of the MID questionnaires added.

1 December 2023: MID Trainings links for on-demand webinars updated to point to hosting by D & JAM Trainings.

29 December 2022: MID Analysis v6.0 and the Interpretive Manual, 4th Edition added to the site. MID Analysis v5.2 and the Interpretive Manual, 3rd Edition are no longer available as of this date.

PAST SITE UPDATES

5 October 2022: Live trainings for 2022-2023 added to the Training page.

18 October 2021: Live trainings for 2021-2022 added to the Training page.

1 October 2020: MID Analysis v5.2 replaced MID Analysis v5.1. It was identified that the ‘Made Actions’ items (client responses and item language) under the Schneiderian First-Rank Scales in The Extended MID Report were not correctly linked.  This omission did not affect calculations for symptoms or any other scales, so the diagnostic impressions, etc., remain unchanged from v5.0. We are greatly appreciative of the feedback on any issues identified in the MID Analysis document, as it allows us to make corrections in a more responsive manner than was previously possible.

15 September 2020: MID Analysis v5.1 replaced MID Analysis v5.0. It was identified that MID Item 183 was missing in the list of Somatoform Symptoms items in The Extended MID Report for both the Mac and PC versions, so it was re-added in both versions.  This omission did not affect calculations for symptoms or other scales at all, so the diagnostic impressions, etc., remain unchanged from v5.0 to v5.1. Additionally, minor formatting improvements were made for The MID Report, The MID Extended Report, and the Line/Bar Graphs for both Mac and PC versions. 

5 June 2020: Non-English Language Translation and Validation Guidelines added to the MID page for professionals interested in norming the MID in a non-English language.

8 May 2020: The German translation was added to the MID page. All known, non-English translations of the MID are now available on the site.

2 May 2020: MID Analysis v5.0 and the Interpretive Manual, 3rd Edition added to the site. MID Analysis v4.0 and the Interpretive Manual, 2nd Edition are no longer available.

4 April 2020: Directions for clients completing the MID at home during the COVID-19 outbreak added to the site. Click here to download.

This is the Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation, or ‘MID’, a 218-item, clinician-administered, client self-report measure. The MID is intended for use only by mental health practitioners and researchers.

To evaluate your client’s symptom features, then generate and interpret their results, you will need the following:

• 1. The Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (MID): The MID is available in two versions: 1) Adult (appropriate for those with a 7th grade (US) or higher reading comprehension level, which is available in a variety of languages) and, 2) adolescent (which uses less formal language, and modifies some items to be more age-congruent, but is available only in American English). You can download a copy of the MID below, on the current page.
  2. (OPTIONAL) Instructions for Clients Completing the MID at Home, for those practicing via tele-health.
  3. MID Analysis: This is the Excel program into which you enter client data to generate The MID Report, etc. It is available only in American English. Both the standard MID and the Adolescent MID are scored using the same MID Analysis. NOTE: Do not send the MID Analysis to your client. It is designed for clinician and researcher use only.
  4. The MID Interpretive Manual: The manual offers a detailed walk-through explaining how to administer the MID, enter client responses into the MID Analysis, generate The MID Report and MID Line/Bar Graphs, and begin to understand the results. The manual is available only in American English.

You can only obtain the MID Analysis and MID Interpretive Manual by requesting access to them on the page entitled, ‘MID Interpretive Manual & MID Analysis’ on this website.

All documents are in .pdf format unless otherwise noted. Choose a copy of the MID in your preferred format below:

Instructions for Clients Completing the MID at Home

If you are practicing via tele-health, you likely are not asking a client to come to your office to complete the MID in your office. For that purpose, we have created a convenient, one-sheet set of directions that you can provide your client to better ensure reliable MID results.

Directions for Completing MID (English)

MID – Adult Version (English)

MID - MS Word (English)

The MS Word version resembles the Questions tab on MID Analysis and allows for handwritten number, rather than circled, responses. This version tends to allow for easier transfer to the MID Analysis Questions worksheet. PLEASE NOTE: If you are browsing via a PC or a mobile device, you must ‘Save as…’, then open this document via MS Word (or other word processing program) to enter data, rather than simply opening it via the site and entering data directly into it. Otherwise, you risk losing the data you’ve entered.

MID - Formatted (English)

The ‘Formatted’ version does not contain all of the introductory text that the ‘Original’ version does (see below), but it still requires that the test-taker circle their responses to each question.

MID - Original Format (English)

The ‘Original’ version of the current iteration of the MID first appeared in Appendix 3 of the book Rebuilding Shattered Lives, Second Edition (Chu, 2011) with an introduction that you should exclude when you share it with your client. The entire chapter is included here for archival and informational purposes. 

MID – Adolescent Version (English)

Adolescent MID (English)

The Adolescent MID is virtually identical to the standard version of the MID, aside from minor changes in language, where needed, to better accommodate the differences in life experience for younger adolescents in particular (e.g., working, driving, etc.). NOTE: The Adolescent MID employs the same MID Analysis as the Adult MID to calculate results.

MID – Adult Version (Non-English*)

*To date, only the English and Hebrew MIDs are validated/normed. All other versions are offered here for your convenience.

MID - MS Word (Chinese)

NOTE: We have been  made aware of potential language accuracy issues with the Chinese translation, which may necessitate clarification of meaning to avoid misunderstanding and inaccurate responding.

MID (Dutch)

MID - MS Word (Finnish)

MID - MS Word (French)

MID - MS Word (Canadian French)

MID - MS Word (German)

MID - MS Word (Hebrew)

MID - MS Word (Italian)

MID - MS Word (Norwegian)

MID (European Portuguese)

MID (Spanish)

Translating the MID into Another Language

Are you a clinician or researcher Interested in developing a new, non-English translation of the MID or improving/validating one of the existing translations? There are now guidelines for the translation/validation process!

To proceed, you’ll need to do the following:

1. Review the Dell (2006) article on the MID:

Dell, P. F. (2006). The Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (MID): A Comprehensive measure of pathological dissociation. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 7 (2): 77-106.

2. Review the Somer & Dell (2005) article on the development of the Hebrew MID:

Somer, E., & Dell, P. F. (2005). Development of the Hebrew Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (H-MID): A valid and reliable measure of pathological dissociation. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 6 (1): 31-53.

3. Download and follow the MID Non-English Language Translation/Norm Validation Protocol.

4. Contact us HERE to let us know you are interested in developing a new translation, so that we can aid your process and add the results to the MID website.

The MID Analysis is a complex tool, and, although the Interpretive Manual is extensively explanatory, it can take time and practice to learn the nuances and levels of interpretation possible in using the MID.

Two of the authors of the MID Interpretive Manual, 3rd Edition, offer reasonably priced consultation on the intricacies of using the MID Analysis, as well as interpreting and integrating into clinical practice the results you’ll find in The MID Report, The Extended MID Report, and the MID Line/Bar Graphs. See below for background information for each of them before deciding whom to contact.

Schedule a Consult with Michael

D. Michael Coy is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker in private practice in Seattle, Washington. Michael has handled the overhauls of the MID Analysis since the upgrade from v3.8 to v4.0, and collaborated with Jennifer Madere and MID developer Paul Dell, PhD (who, along with Eli Somer, PhD, developer of the Hebrew MID, generously served as editor) on expanding the original Mini-Manual into the full Interpretive Manual available elsewhere on this site. Michael has offered consultation on the use of the MID since 2015.

Michael has served clients in a variety of settings over the past thirteen years, working with homeless persons; severely abused and neglected youth and HIV+ adults in different residential treatment facilities; children, adolescents, adults, and older adults in an inpatient psychiatric facility; adults with mental health disabilities in a psychiatric nursing home; and LGBTQ adults in recovery in a community health center substance use treatment program, prior to moving into full-time private practice in 2013.

Michael’s foundational learning was in psychodynamic theory. In 2011, he trained in EMDR therapy through the EMDR Institute; he has been an EMDRIA Approved Consultant in EMDR therapy since 2015. Michael also has intermediate training in clinical hypnosis (via the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis), Ego State Therapy, and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (Level I).

Michael’s clinical practice focuses on working with people across the dissociative spectrum dealing with interwoven issues such as addictions, compulsions, and self-harming behaviors. Additionally, Michael employs an integrative treatment model to address pre-verbal and early attachment trauma in a brief intensive format.

Michael has co-presented with Jennifer Madere on the MID and its applications to clinical practice  at EMDRIA AC 2017, ISSTD AC 2018 and 2019, EMDR Canada 2018, and ISSTD’s 2019 Regional Conference in New Zealand, and has presented on his own for various groups throughout the US. Michael presented at ISSTD’s 2016 Annual Conference, along with Ulrich Lanius, PhD, and Sandra Paulsen, PhD, on the assessment and treatment of dissociative disorders. He has served as guest lecturer on EMDR therapy in 2014 and 2015 in University of Illinois at Chicago’s social work program, and presented on EMDR therapy for the Washington State Society for Clinical Social Work in 2017.

Michael served as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) for what was intended to be a three-year term starting in 2017.  In 2018, however, Michael was appointed as Treasurer and was elected to that position for 2019 – 2021. Michael was named a Fellow of ISSTD in 2019. Additionally, Michael created and co-chaired the ISSTD EMDR therapy training task group, which developed ISSTD’s EMDR therapy training.

Michael previously served as a member of EMDRIA’s Standards & Training Committee from 2014 to 2017, and in 2020 was appointed to the EMDR Council of Scholars Future of EMDR Therapy Project, serving on the clinical practice working group.

Schedule a Consult with Jennifer

Jennifer Madere is a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor in private practice, and founding partner of Intuitus Group Counseling Clinic, PLLC & Independent Professionals in Cedar Park, Texas.

Having worked with child and adult survivors of trauma on their journey of healing since 2003, she worked in residential treatment, shelter, hotline, and community mental health settings before beginning private practice in 2008. As she better understood the needs of her clients, Jennifer completed EMDR therapy training in 2010, and attended the ISSTD Annual Conference for the first time in 2012.

Within her therapy and consultation practice, Jennifer began to see a need for more consistent and thorough assessment of trauma-related symptoms and client history to inform safe and effective treatment.  This led to her gathering data to compare ACES (Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale) and DES (Dissociative Experience Scale) scores, and presenting these findings at the EMDRIA Annual Conference in 2014.

Concurrently, Jennifer began using the MID in her therapy and consultation practice and teaching other clinicians to recognize and assess symptoms of pathological dissociation. From 2014-2019, Jennifer presented a workshop entitled Assessing Complex Trauma and Dissociative Disorders for EMDR Clinicians: What to do after the DES within Weekend 2 of EMDR therapy trainings offered by EMDRIA approved trainer, Rick Levinson, LCSW.

Increasingly aware of the need and appreciation for the MID by clinicians utilizing EMDR therapy, Jennifer sought and obtained permission from Paul Dell to present on the MID during the EMDRIA Annual Conference in 2015. Upon meeting D. Michael Coy immediately following that presentation, Jennifer and Michael began collaborating with Paul Dell on the writing of the 2nd Edition of the Interpretive Manual and updating the MID Analysis, initially presented in 2017 at the EMDRIA Annual Conference in Bellevue, WA. Jennifer and Michael have continued to update the MID materials and have presented internationally on the MID and related therapeutic interventions.

For those who may need to cite the MID for any reason, its correct citation is:

Dell, P. F. (2006). The Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (MID): A Comprehensive measure of pathological dissociation. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 7(2), 77-106.

Download a Free Copy

MID-Related Publications and Research

Update in progress as of May 2020. Each reference below is (or will be) linked to its the corresponding publication, if available. To download a copy of these references in .pdf format,  please press/click here.

1. Dell, P. F. (2001). Should the dissociative disorders field choose its own diagnostic criteria for dissociative identity disorder? Reply to Cardeña, Coons, Putnam, Spiegel, and Steinberg. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 2 (1): 65-72. [FREE]

2. Dell, P.  F. (2002). Dissociative phenomenology of dissociative identity disorder. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 190 (1): 10-15. [PAID]

3. Gast, U. (2002). Komplexe Dissoziative Störungen. Konzeptionelle Untersuchung zur Diagnostik und Behandlung der Dissoziativen Identitätsstörung und ähnlicher Erkrankungen. Habilitationsschrift, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover.

4. Howley, J., & Ross, C. A. (2003). The structure of dissociative fugue: A case report. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 4 (4): 109-124. [PAID]

5. Schmidt, S. J. (2004). Developmental needs meeting strategy: A new treatment approach applied to dissociative identity disorder. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 5 (4): 55-78. [PAID]

6. Somer, E., Soref, E., & Lawental, E. (2004). Dissociative disorders among substance use disorder patients: A research report. Jerusalem: The Israel Anti-drug Authority. [In Hebrew].

7. Somer, E., & Dell, P. F. (2005). Development of the Hebrew Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (H-MID): A valid and reliable measure of pathological dissociation. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 6 (1): 31-53. [FREE]

8. Dell, P. F. (2006). A new model of dissociative identity disorder. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 29 (1): 1-26. [FREE]

9. Dell, P. F. (2006). The Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation (MID): A comprehensive measure of pathological dissociation. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 7 (2): 77-106. [FREE ON MID WEBSITE]

10. Cooper, B. S., Cuttler, C., Dell, P., & Yuille, J. C. (2006). Dissociation and amnesia: A study with male offenders. International Journal of Forensic Psychology, 1 (3): 69-83. [FREE]

11. Schmidt, S. J., & Hernandez, A. (2007). The developmental needs meeting strategy: Eight case studies. Traumatology, 13 (1): 27-48. [FREE]

12. Lautenberg, D., Somer, E., Dell, P. F., & VonDeylen, H. (2008). Abuse history and pathological dissociation among Israeli and American college students: A comparative study. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 9 (1): 51-62. [FREE]

13. Korzekwa, M., Dell, P. F., Link, P. S., Webb, S. P., & Thabane, L. (2008). Estimating the prevalence of borderline personality disorder in psychiatric outpatients using a two-phase procedure. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 49 (4): 380-386. [FREE]

14. Dell, P.F. (2009). The phenomena of pathological dissociation. In P. F. Dell, & J. A. O’Neil (Eds.), Dissociation and the dissociative disorders: DSM-V and beyond (pp. 225-238). New York: Routledge.

15. Dell, P.F. (2009). The long struggle to diagnose multiple personality disorder (MPD). I. Multiple Personality Disorder In P. F. Dell, & J. A. O’Neil (Eds.), Dissociation and the dissociative disorders: DSM-V and beyond (pp. 383-402). New York: Routledge.

16. Dell, P.F. (2009). The long struggle to diagnose multiple personality disorder (MPD). II. Partial MPD. In P. F. Dell, & J. A. O’Neil (Eds.), Dissociation and the dissociative disorders: DSM-V and beyond (pp. 403-428). New York: Routledge.

17. Dell, P.F. & Lawson, D. (2009). Empirically delineating the domain of pathological dissociation. In P. F. Dell, & J. A. O’Neil (Eds.), Dissociation and the dissociative disorders: DSM-V and beyond (pp. 667-692). New York: Routledge.

18. Korzekwa, M. I., Dell, P. F., Link, P. S., Thabane, L., & Fougere, P. (2009).  Dissociation in borderline personality disorder: A detailed look. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 10 (3): 346-367. [PAID]

19. Korzekwa, M. I., Dell, P. F., & Pain, C. (2009). Dissociation and borderline personality disorder: An update for clinicians. Current Psychiatry Reports, 11 (1): 82-88. [FREE]

20. Korzekwa, M. I., & Dell, P. F. (2010). Dissociation in borderline personality disorder. In A. Widera-Wysczańska & A. Kuczyńska (Eds.), Interpersonal trauma and its consequences in adulthood (pp. 99-112). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

21. Somer, E., Altus, L., & Ginzburg, K. (2010). Dissociative psychopathology among opioid use disorder patients: Exploring the “chemical dissociation” hypothesis. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 51, 419-425.

22. Rodewald, F., Dell, P. F., Wilhelm-Gossling, C., & Gast, U. (2011). Are major dissociative disorders characterized by a qualitatively different kind of dissociation? Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 12, 9-24.

23. Laddis, A., & Dell, P. F. (2012). Dissociation and psychosis in DID and schizophrenia. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 13(4), 397-413.

24. Laddis, A., & Dell, P. F. (2012). All that dissociation instruments measure is not dissociation: “All that glistens is not gold.” Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 13(4), 418-420.

25. Dell, P. F. (2013). Three dimensions of dissociative amnesia. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 14(1), 25-39.

26. Wabnitz, P., Gast, U., & Catani, C. (2013). Differences in trauma history and psychopathology between PTSD patients with and without co-occurring dissociative disorders. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 4, 21452 – http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/ejpt.v4i0.21452.

27. Mueller-Pfeiffer, C., Schick, M., Schulte-Vels, T., O’Gorman, R., Michels, L., Martin-Soelch, C., Blair, J. B., Rufer, M., Schnyde, U., Zeffiro, T., & Hasler, G. (2013). Atypical visual processing in posttraumatic stress disorder.  NeuroImage: Clinical, 3, 531-538.

28. Mueller-Pfeiffer, C., & Wittmann, L. (2013). Preliminary investigation of the reliability and validity of the German version of the State Scale of Dissociation (SSD). Journal of Traumatic Stress Disorders and Treatment, 2:2.

29. Mueller-Pfeiffer, C., Rufibach, K., Wyss, D., Peon, N., Pitman, R. K., & Rufer, M. (2013). Screening for dissociative disorders in psychiatric out- and day care-patients. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 35(4), 592-602.

30. Frewen, P. A., Brown, M. F. D., Steuwe, C., & Lanius, R. A. (2015).  Latent profile analysis and principal axis factoring of the DSM-5 dissociative subtype. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 6, 26406.

31. Laddis, A., Dell, P. F., & Korzekwa, M. (2017). Comparing the symptoms and mechanisms of “dissociation” in dissociative identity disorder and borderline personality disorder. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 18(2), 139-173.

32. Kruger, C., & Fletcher, L. (2017 in press). Predicting a dissociative disorder from type of childhood maltreatment and abuser-abused relational tie. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation,