Psychometric Properties of the SCARED in a Nationally Representative U.S. Sample of 5-12-Year-Olds

Area of Science:

• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• Psychological Assessment
• Developmental Psychology

Background:

• Anxiety disorders are prevalent in children, necessitating reliable screening tools.
• The Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders - Parent Report (SCARED-P) is a common instrument for assessing childhood anxiety.
• Understanding the factor structure and normative data of the SCARED-P in young children is crucial for accurate diagnosis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the factor structure of the SCARED-P in children aged 5-12 years.
• To establish normative anxiety levels reported by parents for this age group using a U.S. nationally representative sample.
• To assess the utility of the SCARED-P as a screening tool for early childhood anxiety.

Main Methods:

• Administered the 41-item SCARED-P to 1,570 parents of children aged 5-12.
• Utilized a nationally representative sample matched to U.S. population demographics.
• Analyzed SCARED-P model fit and mean score differences across age, race/ethnicity, and sex.

Main Results:

• SCARED-P factor structure and subscale reliability were consistent between younger (5-8) and older (9-12) children.
• A five-factor model demonstrated poor fit in both age groups.
• Generalized anxiety symptoms increased with age, while separation anxiety symptoms decreased.
• Females reported higher social anxiety symptoms than males; no race/ethnicity differences were found.

Conclusions:

• The SCARED-P demonstrates utility for screening anxiety in U.S. children as young as 5 years old.
• Caution is recommended when interpreting SCARED-P subscale scores due to observed model fit issues.
• Findings support the use of the SCARED-P for broad anxiety screening but highlight limitations in specific subscale interpretation.