TSCC and TSCYC Screening Forms in a Clinical Sample: Reliability, Validity, and Creating Local Clinical Norms

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Clinical Assessment
• Trauma Studies

Background:

• Childhood trauma is a significant public health concern.
• Accurate screening tools are essential for early identification and intervention.
• Existing measures may require lengthy administration, necessitating efficient screening options.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate clinical norms for two new screening tools derived from the TSCC and TSCYC.
• To assess the reliability and validity of these screening measures in a clinical sample of children.
• To provide a psychometrically sound instrument for screening general trauma and sexual concerns in children.

Main Methods:

• Development of 20-item screening measures (TSCC-Screening Form and TSCYC-Screening Form) from predictive items of longer scales.
• Data collection from a clinical sample of 177 TSCYC and 261 TSCC participants, including abused children.
• Calculation of internal consistencies (Cronbach's alpha) and validity coefficients (correlation with longer scales).

Main Results:

• Internal consistencies ranged from α = .74 to .85.
• Correlation coefficients for validity ranged from r = .563 to .807.
• T score norms were established for the clinical sample.

Conclusions:

• The TSCC-Screening Form and TSCYC-Screening Form demonstrate good reliability and validity.
• These tools show promise for screening multiple domains of child and caregiver-reported concerns.
• The measures effectively assess sexualized behavior, suicidal thoughts, and trauma in children.