Convergent Validity Assessment of a Brief Screen for Poverty with South African Adolescents

Abstract

We explored the convergent validity of a brief screen for poverty with a convenience sample of 462 South African school-aged adolescents. Participants completed the poverty screen of the Developmental Trauma Inventory as well as the Household Economic and Social Status Index, which is a composite measure of socioeconomic status that was developed and validated using South African samples. Results indicated that scores on the poverty screen were significantly negatively correlated for financial/social capital, material consumption, and socioeconomic status subscales, as well as the total scale. These findings provide support for the convergent construct validity of the Developmental Trauma Inventory poverty screen.