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Belongingness and School Refusal in Adolescents: Psychometric Validation and Identification of Risk Profiles
María Pérez-Marco1, Carolina Gonzálvez1, Andrea Fuster1
1Department of Developmental Psychology and Didactics, Faculty of Education, University of Alicante, Carr. de San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03690 San Vicente del Raspeig, Spain.
None:
Belongingness is a fundamental psychological need associated with adolescents' emotional well-being, school engagement, and attendance. Despite the relevance of belongingness for adolescent adjustment, no validated measure of general belongingness is currently available for Spanish adolescents, and little is known about how different belongingness patterns relate to school refusal behaviour. This study provides the first validation of the General Belongingness Scale (GBS) in a sample of Spanish adolescents (N = 690; 12-17 years) and examines latent belongingness profiles and their links to school refusal. Confirmatory Factor Analysis supported a correlated two-factor structure (Inclusion and Exclusion) with satisfactory reliability, and measurement invariance across gender was established at the configural, metric, and scalar levels. Convergent validity was supported by meaningful associations between GBS dimensions and school refusal factors. Latent Profile Analysis identified four profiles: Highly Excluded, Socially Disconnected, Mixed Belonging, and Highly Included, which differed significantly in school refusal, with the Highly Excluded profile showing the highest risk. These findings support the psychometric adequacy of the GBS and identify belongingness as a meaningful socio-emotional factor associated with school refusal risk, with potential implications for early identification and preventive interventions aimed at promoting school attendance and well-being.
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