Assessment of Anxiety Symptoms in School Children: A Cross-Sex and Ethnic Examination

Lindsay E. Holly, Michelle Little, Armando Pina, Linda C. Caterino

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

26 Scopus citations

Abstract

We evaluated the cross-sex and -ethnic (Hispanic/Latino, non-Hispanic White) measurement invariance of anxiety symptoms based on the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale (SCAS) as well as SCAS anxiety symptoms’ correspondence with scores on the 5-item Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) and teacher ratings of child anxiety. Based on data corresponding to 702 children (M age = 9.65, SD = 0.70; 51.9 % girls; 55 % Hispanic/Latino), findings showed some sex and ethnic variations in SCAS measured anxiety at the item and scale levels. Moreover, SCAS correspondence to the 5-item SCARED was found across ethnicity and sex. SCAS correspondence to teacher ratings was found for non-Hispanic White boys and non-Hispanic White girls, marginally in Hispanic/Latino boys, and poorly in Hispanic/Latino girls.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)297-309
Number of pages13
JournalJournal of Abnormal Child Psychology
Volume43
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2014

Keywords

  • Child anxiety symptoms
  • Hispanic/Latino
  • School assessment
  • Screen for child anxiety related emotional disorders
  • Spence children’s anxiety scale
  • Teacher ratings

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

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