Does the Addition of a Somatization Item Improve the Effectiveness of the Student Risk Screening Scale (SRSS)?

Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to determine if an item addressing somatization would improve the ability of the Student Risk Screening Scale for Internalizing and Externalizing Behaviors (SRSS-IE) to identify children at-risk for internalizing disorders. In Phase One, data from three schools were used to determine if the added item contributed to a higher identification rate, as well as to calculate the internal consistency reliability of the scale. The purpose of Phase Two was to assess the validity of the added item. Results from Phase One indicated that the somatization item contributed to a higher percentage of identification of students at-risk. Additionally, Cronbach’s alpha for the internalizing scale with the added item was slightly higher (r = 0.74) than that found by Lane et al. (2012) (r = 0.72). Results from Phase Two were not statistically significant, but contribute helpful qualitative information in support of the somatization item.