Background
Kleptomania is an impulse control disorder characterized by a recurrent failure to resist urges to steal items that are generally not needed for personal use or monetary value. Unlike typical theft motivated by financial gain, anger, or vengeance, individuals with kleptomania experience a mounting sense of tension immediately before the act, followed by gratification, relief, or pleasure during the theft. Despite the temporary relief, the disorder frequently leads to significant feelings of guilt, shame, social isolation, and potential legal consequences.
The Deenz Kleptomania Inventory (DKI) is designed to evaluate these psychological patterns across three primary clinical dimensions: Impulsive Urges & Tension, Gratification & Affective Relief, and Post-Theft Distress & Impairment. Understanding these distinct components can help highlight the severity of impulse-control challenges and the associated emotional cycles.
Participation
The Deenz Kleptomania Inventory is designed for adults and adolescents interested in understanding their patterns of compulsive stealing or impulse control. It can also be utilized by clinicians, educators, and researchers for screening and research purposes. Participation is completely anonymous, and individual session data is not permanently stored.
Scoring & Interpretation
This assessment consists of 20 items scored on a five-point scale (0 to 4). Responses are summed according to the scoring procedures of the assessment. Higher scores generally indicate greater severity of kleptomania symptoms.
Reverse-Scored Items:
Items 4, 11, 12, and 19 are reverse-scored.
Dimension Scoring Keys:
• Impulsive Urges & Tension: Items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (Possible raw score range: 0–28)
• Gratification & Affective Relief: Items 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 (Possible raw score range: 0–24)
• Post-Theft Distress & Impairment: Items 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 (Possible raw score range: 0–28)
Overall Score: Calculated across all 20 items (after adjusting for reverse-scored items) with a possible raw score range of 0–80. Dimension scores are standardized to a 0–100 scale for profiling purposes.
Deenz Kleptomania Inventory (DKI) Questionnaire
Below is the Deenz Kleptomania Inventory (DKI), a digitally adapted 20- items self-assessment questionnaire. This assessment measures behaviors, thoughts, and emotional patterns related to impulse control and stealing. Rate each statement based on how frequently you have experienced these feelings or behaviors over the past few months. There are no right or wrong answers.