Comprehensive Stress Response Inventory for Children: Construction, Reliability, and Validity

The objective of this study was to develop a new measure of stress response in children, the Comprehensive Stress Response Inventory for Children (CSI-C). The items and response options of the original CSI, which was designed for use with adults, were modified using expressions more accessible to children. This measure was then used to conduct a self-report survey among 500 respondents, who were first-grade elementary to third-grade high school students, located in the Tohoku or Kanto regions of Japan at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake. A confirmatory factor analysis of the CSI-C demonstrated the validity of its four-factor structure, and Cronbach’s alpha test indicated the scale to be reliable. Concurrent validity was confirmed with both the DSRS-C and PTSSC-15. Finally, cutoff values were determined using an ROC analysis, at 21 points for general stress response and 12 points for disaster stress response. The CSI-C uses a four-factor system, in accordance with prior theory, and our findings suggest that it provides sufficient reliability and validity as a measure of stress response in children.