Gender and Racial Variability of Dissociative Identity Disorder Symptoms in an International Sample

Dissociative identity disorder (DID) is a childhood-onset posttraumatic biopsychosocial syndrome characterized by identity alteration symptoms in which one loses a sense of agency and ownership over some thoughts, feelings, memories, and behaviors. There is limited investigation of sociodemographic variability related to DID prevalence. Further, there is limited assessment of symptoms in non-clinical samples that may shed light on potential dissociative phenotypes in the general population. We utilized a large citizen science online data collection platform to collect self-report symptoms of dissociative identity disorder among self-selected adults in the general population. Participants (N = 5,589) provided demographic information and completed the Multiscale Dissociation Inventory self-report assessment (MDI). We completed general linear models to investigate associations between race, gender, and geographic location with a provisional self-report DID diagnosis and MDI identity dissociation scores. In general, individuals from marginalized racial groups had higher provisional DID prevalence rates and more severe identity dissociation symptoms compared to White individuals. Genderqueer individuals reported higher rates of provisional DID compared to men and women, and men reported higher rates compared to women. We also observed significant differences in the prevalence of DID symptoms across geographic regions. These novel results suggest that race, gender, and geographic location are linked to variation in rates of provisional DID diagnosis and identity alteration symptom severity. Marginalized groups with potentially the highest rates of DID are underrepresented in current research. Future work should explore contributing factors to these sociodemographic differences to develop effective prevention and treatment strategies for specific groups.