Psychometric Evaluation and International Normative Data for the Deenz Cyclothymia Scale (DSC-32)

Cyclothymia is a chronic, fluctuating mood disorder characterized by numerous periods of hypomanic and depressive symptoms that do not meet the full criteria for major depressive or bipolar episodes. This study evaluates the psychometric properties, internal consistency, subscale structure, and preliminary international norms of the Deenz Cyclothymia Scale (DSC-32), a 32-item self-report instrument designed to assess cyclothymic tendencies across four dimensions: Depressive, Mood Instability, Cognitive, and Hypomanic. Method: A cross-sectional international sample of N = 653 participants representing 45 countries voluntarily completed the DSC-32 via an online psychometric platform between June 6, 2026, and July 16, 2026. The largest geographic cohort was from Brazil (19.8%). Demographic variables (age and gender) were recorded on a voluntary basis. Statistical analyses included descriptive mapping of score distributions, internal consistency testing via Cronbach's alpha, corrected item-total correlation analysis, and percentile rank normalization. Results: The overall index mean score was 69.80% (SD = 13.62, Median = 71.00, Variance = 185.54, SE = 0.53). Skewness was -0.85 and kurtosis was 2.06, demonstrating no critical departures from a normal distribution. The DSC-32 demonstrated high overall internal consistency (alpha = 0.911). Item-total correlations ranged from r = 0.04 to r = 0.65. Q32 ("I notice that I often overestimate or underestimate what I can do") performed poorly (r = 0.04), highlighting a specific item for future scale revision. Dimension-level analysis revealed the highest mean scores on the Depressive subscale (76.91%) and the lowest on the Hypomanic subscale (63.58%).