title: Spider phobia questionnaire for children (SPQ-C): a psychometric study and normative data.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable and valid questionnaire to assess spider fear in children. The Spider Phobia Questionnaire for adults was adapted for children by simplifying items and by assessing situations relevant to children. The SPQ for children (SPQ-C) was administered to two non-clinical samples of children aged 8-12. The first sample consisted of 586 Ss who filled in the SPQ-C twice, with a retest interval of 6-7 weeks. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were high. The second sample consisted of 669 children of which 28 spider phobic and 30 nonphobic girls were selected for the Behavioural Approach Test (BAT). The SPQ-C predicted BAT scores, thus supporting the validity of the questionnaire as a measure of spider fear. Norms for the SPQ-C, based on the total sample of children, are provided.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kindt
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Brosschot
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Muris
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D011594:Psychometrics; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013112:Spiders