Abstract
This study assessed the reliability and construct validity of the Chinese version of the subjective health complaints (SHCs) scale in children. A total of 851 children completed the self-reported subjective health complaints questionnaire (SHCs-C), and 572 parents completed the subjective health complaints questionnaire (SHCs-P), and reported well-being and depression of children using the Children’s Subjective Well-Being Scale and the Children’s Depression Inventory, respectively. After 2–3 weeks, 237 children and their fathers/mothers participated in a retest. We explored the internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the SHCs-C and SHCs-P. The structure of the questionnaire was analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory structural equation modeling. The present study showed that the two-factor model (SHCs-Psycho and SHCs-somatic) fit the data better than the one-factor model. SHCs-C had the advantage of providing a better fit to the data than the one-factor model. Similarly, the SHCs-P scale of the two-factor CFA fit indices was better than that of the one-factor model. The Chinese version of the SHCs-P and SHCs-C had adequate internal reliability for the two dimensions (SHCs-Psycho and SHCs-somatic), with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of 0.72–0.80, and with test-retest correlations of 0.57–0.79. The concurrent validity of the Chinese version of the SHCs-C was supported by significant correlations with depression (r = 0.29–0.52) and well-being (r = 0.17–0.46). The Chinese version of the SHCs-C had better adaptability than that of the original English version, but similar reliability coefficients and construct and convergent validity. The Chinese version of the SHCs-C showed acceptable psychometric properties to measure Chinese children’s personality.
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Acknowledgements
This study was funded by the Key Projects for Natural Science Research in Colleges and Universities in Anhui Province (grant number KJ2018A0306).
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Appendix. Subjective Health Complain Scale
Appendix. Subjective Health Complain Scale
In the last 6 months, how often have you (or your child) had the following...?
1=About every day | 2=More than once a week | 3=About every week | 4=About every month | 5=Rarely or never | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Headache | |||||
Stomach ache | |||||
Backache | |||||
Feeling low | |||||
Irritability or bad temper | |||||
Feeling nervous | |||||
Feeling dizzy |
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Wang, D., Wang, C., Chen, S. et al. Psychometric properties of the subjective health complaints for Chinese children: parent- and self-reports. Curr Psychol 39, 2357–2365 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-9943-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-9943-2