Assessment of anxiety in children and adolescents: A comparative study on the validity and reliability of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale in children and adolescents with anxiety and Autism Spectrum Disorder

Objective: The present study assessed the utility of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale - Parent Form (SCAS-P) across parents of children with (i) anxiety and (ii) Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Method: Parents of children aged 7-18 years with anxiety or ASD completed the SCAS-P. Multiple indicator multiple cause (MIMIC) structural equation modelling was utilized to analyse the data. Results: Analysis revealed different factor structures between the Anxious and ASD groups and evidence for measurement variance across groups in some parts of the SCAS-P. Conclusion: Results on the SCAS-P in children with ASD need to be interpreted with caution. Some SCAS-P items cannot be interpreted in the same way in an ASD population compared to neurotypical children with anxiety.