The Child Rating Scale and its use with middle school-age students

The Child Rating Scale is a socioemotional self-report rating scale design for elementary school children. This study examined the Child Rating Scale with a middle school-age sample (Grades 5 to 8) of 240 students. The Child Rating Scale's four scales have shown moderate to high coefficients alpha. Factor analysis yielded the 4 underlying factors consistent with the current subscales. Supportive convergent validity was found based on the Child Rating Scale subscales' predicted association with the Self-perception Profile for Children and the Psychological Sense of School Membership-Brief. Consistent with current research, decline over grades in rule compliance/acting out and school interest was documented as well as the expected mean sex differences on these two subscales. Possible areas of study are indicated, and the present study's limitations are described. The Child Rating Scale seems to be a promising self-report measure for middle school-age youth.