Abstract
ABSTRACT Objective The present cross-cultural study examined the factor structure, measurement invariance, and convergent validity of the Stress-Symptom and Well-Being Scales from the Stress and Coping Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (SSKJ), originally in German, across gender and for five newly developed language versions: English, French, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian. Design Children and adolescents (N = 5,227) from Germany, France, Russia, the Dominican Republic, Ukraine, and several English-speaking countries participated in the survey study. Main outcome measures The SSKJ Stress-Symptom and Well-Being Scales capture stress symptomatology and well-being with five subscales: Somatic Symptoms, Anger, Sadness, Anxiety, and Well-Being. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used for validation. Results The factorial structure (five factors) was confirmed. In multi-group comparisons, confirmatory factor analyses showed partial metric invariance across the different languages. Regarding gender, results showed scalar invariance for all languages, except for Spanish. Gender differences were shown with girls scoring higher on somatic symptoms, sadness, anxiety (German-, French-, Russian-speaking samples), anger (French), and well-being (German, Ukrainian). Correlations with indicators of mental health and behavioral problems demonstrated convergent validity. Conclusion The SSKJ Stress-Symptom and Well-Being Scales showed psychometric evidence for equivalence across the different languages and gender. Thus, this instrument is a useful tool for cross-cultural research in children and adolescents.
Highlights
D Coping Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (SSKJ), originally in German, across gender and for five newly developed language versions: English, French, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian
The present study aimed to investigate the factorial structure and the measurement invariance of the SSKJ Stress-Symptom and Well-Being Scales across gender and different language versions (English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian) within children and adolescents from various countries, including Western, Southern, and Eastern regions
To allow for consistent comparisons across the different languages, the five-factor structure was retained for subsequent analyses
Summary
Participants were 5,347 children and adolescents recruited from elementary schools and high schools in various countries. The final sample consisted of 5,227 children and adolescents from Germany (n = 3,150; i.e. German-speaking sample), France (n = 318; French sample), Russia (n = 376; Russian sample), the Dominican Republic (n = 207; Spanish sample), Ukraine (n = 492; Ukrainian sample), and several English-speaking countries such as Australia, Great Britain, Ireland, and the USA (English sample: n = 684). In terms of age (total sample: M = 11.53 years, SD = 1.91, median = 12, range 7–18 years), the language sub-samples differed, F (5, 5207) = 120.31, p < .001, Eta2 = 104. Children were youngest in the German and Spanish samples and oldest in the Ukrainian sample
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