The Chinese version of the Gastrointestinal Unhelpful Thinking Scale (GUTs) was translated, culturally adapted and psychometrically validated in 212 patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in Shanghai according to the Brislin model. The scale has excellent content validity with a level of 0.80 and a mean scale level of 0.987. Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the original two-factor structure (pain catastrophizing and visceral sensitivity) explaining 66.240% of the total variance. Confirmatory factor analysis showed acceptable model fit: χ²/df = 2.991, CFI = 0.853, RMSEA = 0.038. The scale has good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.947), test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.844) and a Spearman-Brown coefficient of 0.912. GUTs is a valid and reliable scale for assessing gastrointestinal-specific thought patterns in Chinese patients with IBS suitable for clinical use.