There are five diagnostic criteria for acute stress disorder: (1) being exposed to a real or threatened act of violence (death, serious injury, sexual violence); (2) repeated exposure to these traumatic events can inflict this stress response; (3) presence of at least nine symptoms (listed in diagnostic features); (4) the duration of the disturbance is 3 days to 1 month after trauma exposure and leads to clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning; and, (5) the impairments experienced are not caused by a substance or other condition and are ruled to be caused by this disorder.