Validation of the brief version of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale for Spanish children (SCAS‐C‐8).

Objective: This study aimed to validate the self‐reported brief version of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale–Children (SCAS‐C‐8) in pre‐adolescent Spanish children. Method: Participants were 824 children aged 8–12 from a community sample. The results revealed a good fit to the one‐factor structure, adequate internal consistency (α = 0.75), and evidence of test‐retest reliability (α = 0.77). Results: The strong relationship between the SCAS‐C‐8 and emotional problems provided evidence of convergent validity. Also, the results showed factorial gender invariance. Conclusion: The SCAS‐C‐8 is a suitable instrument for pre‐adolescent Spanish children. The brevity and simplicity of this scale may facilitate early detection and help to narrow the existent gap between the presence of anxiety problems and psychological assistance‐seeking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]