Open AccessPsychometric properties of Nepalese preschool anxiety scale among preschool children: A cross‐sectional study
Author(s) -
Maharjan Sabina,
Rana Mita,
Neupane Bidusha,
Rijal Sujan,
Shakya Suraj,
Pradhan Pramesh Man,
Ojha Saroj Prasad,
Gautam Kamal,
Singh Rakesh
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
health science reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.462
H-Index - 7
ISSN - 2398-8835
DOI - 10.1002/hsr2.808
Subject(s) - nepali , anxiety , cronbach's alpha , clinical psychology , confirmatory factor analysis , cross sectional study , psychology , scale (ratio) , internal consistency , psychometrics , medicine , psychiatry , structural equation modeling , art , statistics , physics , literature , mathematics , pathology , quantum mechanics
Background The Preschool Anxiety Scale (PAS)‐Parent version scale is a 28‐item measure designed to assess anxiety symptoms in preschoolers aged 3−6 years. The aim of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Nepali translated version of the PAS‐Parent version. Methods A descriptive cross‐sectional design was used to collect data from 680 mothers among seven conveniently selected schools in Kathmandu. Results The difference in PAS‐Parent version scores across age groups was found to be statistically significant. In confirmatory factor analysis, 28 items showed a poor fit of the five‐factor original model for the data. However, removing three items (25 item version) through the five‐factor model indicated a better fit. Internal consistency measured by Cronbach's α for the PAS‐Parent version scale was of good range (0.87). Cronbach's α of the subscales: generalized anxiety (0.63), social phobia (0.67), physical injury fears (0.75), and separation anxiety (0.63) were in fair range; while it was in poor range for the obsessive‐compulsive subscale (0.567). Conclusion Nepali version of the PAS demonstrated fair psychometric properties, supporting its utility in screening and assessing a broad range of anxiety symptoms in Nepalese preschoolers.