Process / pipelinesomatic-symptom-assessment

Somatic Symptom Scale-8 (SSS-8)

The Somatic Symptom Scale-8 is a brief eight-item self-report instrument designed by Bernd Gierk and colleagues to assess the severity and burden of somatic (bodily) symptoms. Published in JAMA Internal Medicine in 2014, the SSS-8 is derived from the longer Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale and serves as a rapid screening tool for somatic symptom disorder and medically unexplained symptoms. It is widely used in primary care, general medicine, and psychiatry to identify patients whose physical complaints may warrant psychological or behavioral intervention.

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Sources

  1. Gierk, B., Kohlmann, S., Kroenke, K., Spangenberg, L., Zhan, Y., Scherer, M., & Herzberg, P. Y. (2014). The Somatic Symptom Scale-8 (SSS-8): a brief measure of somatic symptom burden. JAMA Internal Medicine, 174(3), 399–407. DOI: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.12179
  2. Kroenke, K., Spitzer, R. L., Williams, J. B., & Löwe, B. (2010). The Patient Health Questionnaire Somatic, Anxiety, and Depressive Symptom Scales: a systematic review. General Hospital Psychiatry, 32(4), 345–359. DOI: 10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2010.03.006
  3. Toussaint, A., Murray, A. M., Voigt, K., Gierk, B., Kroenke, K., Scherer, M., & Lowe, B. (2016). Development and validation of the Somatic Symptom Disorder-B Criteria Scale (SSD-12). Psychosomatic Medicine, 78(1), 5–12. DOI: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000240

Related methods

ScholarGateSomatic Symptom Scale-8 (Somatic Symptom Scale-8 (SSS-8)). Retrieved 2026-06-04 from https://scholargate.app/en/clinical-psychology/somatic-symptom-scale-8