Psicothema was founded in Asturias (northern Spain) in 1989, and is published jointly by the Psychology Faculty of the University of Oviedo and the Psychological Association of the Principality of Asturias (Colegio Oficial de Psicología del Principado de Asturias).
We currently publish four issues per year, which accounts for some 100 articles annually. We admit work from both the basic and applied research fields, and from all areas of Psychology, all manuscripts being anonymously reviewed prior to publication.
Psicothema, 2011. Vol. Vol. 23 (nº 2). 289-294
Antonio Godoy, Aurora Gavino, Francisco Carrillo, María Pilar Cobos y Carolina Quintero
Universidad de Málaga
Se presenta la versión española de la Spence Children Anxiety Scale (SCAS), un instrumento infanto-juvenil que evalúa los trastornos de ansiedad tal como se establecen en el DSM-IV. Las puntuaciones de la SCAS se sometieron a análisis factorial confirmatorio en una muestra de 1.671 escolares de entre 10 y 17 años. Los resultados han apoyado la estructura propuesta de seis escalas interrelacionadas entre sí. Dicha estructura presenta invarianza factorial completa (excepto para las medias) en chicos y chicas y en distintos grupos de edad. En general, las chicas han puntuado algo más alto que los chicos. Las relaciones de las puntuaciones de la SCAS con la edad son inexistentes o muy bajas y negativas. El problema de ansiedad menos acusado ha sido el de ataques de pánico y agorafobia. Los problemas que más frecuentemente presentan puntuaciones altas extremas son el trastorno obsesivo-compulsivo y la fobia social. Se concluye que la versión española de la SCAS puede utilizarse con confianza en la evaluación de los problemas de ansiedad infanto-juveniles.
Factor structure of the Spanish version of the Spence Children Anxiety Scale (SCAS). This paper presents the Spanish version of the Spence Children Anxiety Scale (SCAS), a rating scale for children and adolescents assessing anxiety disorders as they appear in the DSM-IV. SCAS scores were subjected to confirmatory factor analyses in a sample of 1671 children 10 to 17 years old. Results supported the proposed structure of six interrelated scales. This structure is completely invariant (except for means) in boys and girls and across age groups. Overall, girls scored slightly higher than boys. The relationship of SCAS scores with the child’s age was nonexistent or very low and negative. The least frequent anxiety problems among children and adolescents were panic attacks and agoraphobia. Problems that most frequently presented extreme high scores were obsessive-compulsive disorder and social phobia. It is concluded that the Spanish version of the SCAS can confidently be used in the assessment of anxiety disorders in children.
SPANISH
ENGLISH