Milane Mia-Joe, Chahine Abdallah, Malaeb Diana, El Khatib Sami, Dabbous Mariam, Sakr Fouad, Fekih-Romdhane Feten, Hallit Souheil, Obeid Sahar
School of Medicine and Medical Sciences, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, P.O. Box 446, Jounieh, Lebanon.
College of Pharmacy, Gulf Medical University, Ajman, United Arab Emirates.
Sci Rep. 2025 Apr 15;15(1):12982. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-96856-0.
Anxiety, characterized by an unpleasant state of anticipatory unease, manifests in approximately 19% of adolescents and children within the Lebanese population. Given the major influence of traditional mindset and the stigma concerning mental health in Lebanon, children often express anxiety differently that can go unnoticed, and leading to underreported anxiety symptoms. Having a parental perspective in a collectivist culture is important. Lebanon is known to have a strong family-oriented culture where parents have an important role in shaping children's emotional and psychological wellbeing. Therefore, the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale-Parent (SCAS) might be an appropriate tool to aid in the identification of anxiety. This study aims to validate the SCAS-Parent in the Arabic language, assessing reliability, validity and consistency of the scale. This cross-sectional study enrolled 502 adult parents from all over Lebanon. The data was collected through a Google form and using snowball technique during November 2023. The questionnaire included sociodemographic data, the Brief version of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale for the Parents (SCAS-P- 8) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS- 8). A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted; calculated fit indices were the normed model chi-square (χ²/df), the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), the standardized root mean square residual (SRMR), the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) and the comparative fit index (CFI). Values ≤ 5 for χ²/df, ≤ 0.08 for RMSEA, ≤ 0.05 for SRMR and ≥ 0.95 for CFI and TLI indicate good fit of the model to the data. CFA results indicated that fit of the one-factor model of the SCAS-P- 8 scale was acceptable: χ2/df = 84.53/20 = 4.23, RMSEA = 0.080 (90% CI 0.063, 0.098), SRMR = 0.035, CFI = 0.966, TLI = 0.952. The standardized estimates of factor loadings were all adequate. The reliability of the scale was good (ω = 0.90/α = 0.90). Higher parental depression (r = 0.61; p < 0.001), anxiety (r = 0.62; p < 0.001) and stress (r = 0.48; p < 0.001) were significantly associated with higher anxiety in the child. The study validates the SCAS-P- 8 for its application in the Lebanese population, demonstrating high internal consistency, reliability, and validity, indicating its potential as a screening tool for anxiety in children in the hands of psychologists and health-care professionals. Anxious parents will most likely have anxious children, leading to a vicious cycle. Early screening of anxiety in children can potentially impact the quality of life and developmental status of children. Additionally, assessing several aspects of anxiety can help prevent its long-term consequences that can affect academic performance, social relationships, and overall well-being.
焦虑的特征是一种不愉快的预期性不安状态，在黎巴嫩人口中，约19%的青少年和儿童表现出焦虑。鉴于传统观念以及黎巴嫩对心理健康的污名化的重大影响，儿童常常以不同的方式表达焦虑，这些方式可能未被注意到，从而导致焦虑症状报告不足。在集体主义文化中，拥有父母的视角很重要。黎巴嫩以其浓厚的家庭导向文化而闻名，在这种文化中，父母在塑造孩子的情感和心理健康方面发挥着重要作用。因此，斯宾斯儿童焦虑量表家长版（SCAS）可能是帮助识别焦虑的合适工具。本研究旨在验证阿拉伯语版的SCAS家长版，评估该量表的信度、效度和一致性。这项横断面研究招募了来自黎巴嫩各地的502名成年家长。数据于2023年11月通过谷歌表单并采用滚雪球技术收集。问卷包括社会人口学数据、斯宾斯儿童焦虑量表家长简版（SCAS-P-8）和抑郁焦虑压力量表（DASS-8）。进行了验证性因素分析（CFA）；计算得到的拟合指数有标准化模型卡方（χ²/df）、近似均方根误差（RMSEA）、标准化均方根残差（SRMR）、塔克-刘易斯指数（TLI）和比较拟合指数（CFI）。χ²/df值≤5、RMSEA值≤0.08、SRMR值≤0.05以及CFI和TLI值≥0.95表明模型与数据拟合良好。CFA结果表明，SCAS-P-8量表单因素模型的拟合度可以接受：χ2/df = 84.53/20 = 4.23，RMSEA = 0.080（90%置信区间0.063，0.098），SRMR = 0.035，CFI = 0.966，TLI = 0.952。因素负荷的标准化估计值均足够。该量表的信度良好（ω = 0.90/α = 0.90）。较高的家长抑郁（r = 0.61；p < 0.001）、焦虑（r = 0.62；p < 0.001）和压力（r = 0.48；p < 0.001）与孩子较高的焦虑显著相关。该研究验证了SCAS-P-8在黎巴嫩人群中的应用，证明其具有高内部一致性、信度和效度，表明其在心理学家和医疗保健专业人员手中作为儿童焦虑筛查工具的潜力。焦虑的父母很可能会有焦虑的孩子，从而导致恶性循环。早期筛查儿童焦虑可能会影响儿童的生活质量和发育状况。此外，评估焦虑的多个方面有助于预防其可能影响学业成绩、社会关系和整体幸福感的长期后果。
