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Spanish Validation of the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factorial structure and psychometric properties of the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale (SCAS) in a sample of 1,708 Spanish children aged between 8 and 12 years. The SCAS was demonstrated to have satisfactory internal consistency with the Spanish sample, and factor analysis confirmed the six-factor original model. Convergent validity was supported by correlations with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children and the welfare dimension of the Child Health and Illness Profile-Children Edition. Low correlations between the SCAS and the Children’s Depression Inventory supported the divergent validity. Analysis suggested that anxiety scores decrease with age, and girls reported higher scores than boys. Overall, the SCAS was shown to have good psychometric properties for use with Spanish children by clinicians and researchers.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by BANCAJA-UMH Grant (2007–2009) awarded to Mireia Orgilés and National Plan for Research, Development and Technological Innovation Grant (EDU2008-05060) awarded to Xavier Méndez.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Psychology, Miguel Hernández University, Avda. de la Universidad s/n, 03202, Elche, Alicante, Spain

    Mireia Orgilés & José P. Espada

  2. Faculty of Psychology, University of Murcia, Campus Universitario de Espinardo, 30100, Murcia, Spain

    Xavier Méndez

  3. Griffith University, Nathan Campus, Nathan, QLD, 4111, Australia

    Susan H. Spence

  4. Center for Health, Intervention, and Prevention, University of Connecticut, 2006 Hillside Road, Unit 1248, Storrs, CT, 06269-1248, USA

    Tania B. Huedo-Medina

Authors
  1. Mireia Orgilés
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  2. Xavier Méndez
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  3. Susan H. Spence
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  4. Tania B. Huedo-Medina
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  5. José P. Espada
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Correspondence to Mireia Orgilés.

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Orgilés, M., Méndez, X., Spence, S.H. et al. Spanish Validation of the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 43, 271–281 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-011-0265-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-011-0265-y

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