Norms for a German version of the Phenomenological Control Scale : measuring the capacity for creating and controlling experience

Abstract

The ability to create experiences which misrepresent reality and thereby meet strategic goals is a stable trait that varies substantially in the general population. The capacity for such phenomenological control can be measured by response to imaginative suggestions for a variety of experiences, e.g. hallucination in various modalities, amnesia, paralysis, or motor actions, which are experienced as involuntary. Here, we present norms for a German translation of the Phenomenological Control Scale [Lush et al. (The Phenomenological Control Scale: measuring the capacity for creating illusory nonvolition, hallucination, and delusion. Collabra: Psychology 2021;7:29542)]. Data were collected from a representative sample of native-German speakers (N = 299) using a single-session online screening procedure. We show that the translated scale is psychometrically sound, and in line with the results of the original scale in terms of mean scores, distribution, and internal consistency. All analyses, code, data, materials, and the full questionnaire script are made freely available. Other researchers in the field of psychology are welcome to access and encouraged to use the German norms for the Phenomenological Control Scale, e.g. to assess the degree to which trait phenomenological control may be involved in other psychological effects.