What is the Revised Fear Survey Schedule for Children measuring?

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Developmental Psychology

Background:

• The Fear Survey Schedule for Children-Revised (FSSC-R) is a common tool for assessing childhood fears.
• Previous research questions the FSSC-R's validity, suggesting it may not reflect actual, regular childhood fears.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the actual occurrence and prevalence of five specific Danger and Death fears from the FSSC-R in children aged 8-12.
• To compare FSSC-R results with a fear list procedure and a diary method for assessing fear occurrence.

Main Methods:

• The study involved 102 school children aged 8-12.
• Three assessment methods were used: standard FSSC-R, a fear list procedure, and a diary method tracking fear occurrence over the past week.
• Specific FSSC-R items examined included fears of not breathing, being hit by a vehicle, falling, bombings, and fire.

Main Results:

• Fears ranked high using the standard FSSC-R procedure.
• These fears were considerably less common when assessed via a fear list.
• The diary method revealed a low probability of actual daily occurrence, short duration, and low intensity for these fears.

Conclusions:

• The standard FSSC-R procedure may overestimate the prevalence and intensity of certain childhood fears.
• Self-report measures like the FSSC-R might not accurately capture the actual daily experience of fears in children.
• Further research is needed to refine fear assessment methods in pediatric populations.