PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to assess the reliability and validity of 
the Spanish version of the Davidson trauma scale (DTS-S) and to determine the 
prevalence and correlates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in a 
non-clinical random sample of prison inmates.
DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Probabilistic samples of 1,179 inmates from 26 
penal institutions in Puerto Rico were selected using a multistage sampling 
design. Population estimates and correlations were obtained for PTSD, 
generalized anxiety and depression. The reliability, factor structure, and 
convergent validity of the DTS-S were assessed. Cross-validation was employed to 
confirm the results of the factor analyses.
FINDINGS: Using the cut-offs adopted by the scale's author, 136 (13.4 percent) 
of the inmates are likely to have current PTSD and 117 (11.6 percent) reach the 
cut-off for sub-threshold PTSD. Confirmatory factor analysis generated two 
factors explaining 53 percent of the variance. High reliabilities were obtained 
for the total scale (α=0.95) and for the frequency and severity scales (α=0.90 
and 0.91). Significantly higher DTS-S scores were found for females (t=2.26, 
p<0.025), for inmates diagnosed with depression or anxiety (t=2.02, p<0.05), and 
those reporting suicide attempts (t=4.47, p<0.0001).
ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Findings support that the DTS-S is a reliable and valid 
measure to assess PTSD symptoms in Latino inmate populations and to identify 
individuals at risk for the disorder that require confirmatory diagnosis and 
clinical interventions.