Development and validation of a well-being scale for children

Abstract

The significance of measuring children’s well-being has gained prominence in recent years. In Japan, developing self-report scales for children is necessary to address various social problems. This study aimed to develop a scale for measuring children’s well-being and examine its reliability and validity. First, the scale items were created using descriptions provided by fifth- and sixth-grade elementary school students. An exploratory factor analysis subsequently revealed that the well-being scale for children comprised three factors and 12 items. Finally, the results from confirmatory factor analysis and correlation analysis with the related concepts of mental health, self-esteem, and social support indicated the scale’s validity.