Factor structure and construct validity of the Emotions as a Child Scale (EAC) in Chinese children.

Abstract

The Emotions as a Child Scale (EAC) is an efficient tool to assess parental emotion socialization in Western contexts. However, the cross-cultural utility of the EAC has not been well documented. To address this gap, the present study aimed to investigate its factor structure and measurement invariance across child sex in Chinese children (n = 477, 47.4% girls, 9- to 12-years-old). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses suggested that a revised 2-factor model (including 12 items in each of the three emotion subscales), consisting of supportive and nonsupportive strategies, was a good alternative to prior models. This new 2-factor model demonstrated strict measurement invariance across child sex and satisfactory internal consistency. The criterion validity of the revised EAC was supported by expected relationships with the measures of child-parent relationship and parenting behavior. Findings suggest that the revised EAC holds promise as a youth-reported instrument for assessing perceived parental emotion socialization in Chinese children, although more studies are needed to replicate our findings in other Chinese samples. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).