Factor structure of the family climate for road safety scale in emerging adults in the United States

The Family Climate for Road Safety Scale (FCRSS) was developed to measure parenting behaviors specific to the driving context. The original validation study found a scale structure composed of seven factors. However, this structure has not been consistently replicated. Two- and six-factor structures have also been identified. Further, this measure has not been validated in the U.S. and has not been subjected to measurement invariance testing to determine the factor structure's suitability across sex. Additionally, its ability to predict the driving style of emerging adults with varied driving experience has not been directly examined. The current study utilized exploratory and confirmatory factor analytic procedures to identify the factor structure of the FCRSS in a sample of emerging adults in the U.S. The sample consisted of 4392 students recruited from six universities. The sample was predominantly female (68.8 %), and was 83.5 % White, 6.1 % Black or African American, 5.1 % Asian American, 4.6 % biracial or multiracial, 0.4 % American Indian or Alaskan Native, and 0.2 % Pacific Islander or Hawaiian. Results indicated that a five-factor model of the FCRSS provided the best fit to the data compared to one-, two-, six-, and seven-factor models. The five factors identified for the model were: Noncommitment, Monitoring, Feedback, Communication, and Modeling. Further, invariance testing revealed that the five-factor model fit equally well for males and females. Some factors of the FCRSS predicted driving outcomes and driving styles in the expected directions. These findings have implications for family/parenting-based driving interventions for adolescents and young adults.