Department of Biostatistics, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Department of Allied Health Sciences, Institute for Collaboration on Health, Intervention, and Policy, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.
Qual Life Res. 2019 Mar;28(3):829-840. doi: 10.1007/s11136-018-2049-3. Epub 2018 Nov 24.
This study aims to assess the measurement invariance of the short version of the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS-25) across male and female adolescents along with child self-reports and parent proxy-reports.
The sample consisted of 2039 adolescents and their parents from 51 public and private schools in Shiraz (southern Iran). The measurement invariance of the RCADS-25 was investigated by the multilevel multiple-indicators multiple-causes model. In addition, the reliability of the questionnaire was examined by Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and its validity was evaluated by exploratory and categorical confirmatory factor analysis.
Although the RCADS-25 includes five (20%) non-invariant items across male and female adolescents, their impact is negligible at the scale level. In addition, 10 out of 25 items (40%) were non-invariant across self- and proxy-reports, which did not have substantial effect at the scale level.
Based on our findings, the instrument can be used, albeit with caution, for comparing depression and anxiety scores between male and female adolescents as well as child self-reports and parent proxy-reports.
本研究旨在评估修订版儿童焦虑和抑郁量表（RCADS-25）短版在男女性青少年中以及儿童自我报告和家长代理报告中的测量不变性。
该样本由来自伊朗南部设拉子的 51 所公立和私立学校的 2039 名青少年及其父母组成。通过多层次多指标多原因模型来研究 RCADS-25 的测量不变性。此外，通过 Cronbach's alpha 系数来检验问卷的可靠性，通过探索性和类别验证性因子分析来评估其有效性。
尽管 RCADS-25 包括五个（20%）在男女性青少年之间不可变的项目，但它们在量表水平上的影响是微不足道的。此外，25 个项目中有 10 个（40%）在自我报告和代理报告之间不可变，这在量表水平上没有实质性影响。
根据我们的发现，该工具可以谨慎使用，用于比较男女性青少年以及儿童自我报告和家长代理报告的抑郁和焦虑得分。
