The Somatic Complaint List: validation of a self-report questionnaire assessing somatic complaints in children.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the Somatic Complaint List (SCL) in children.


METHODS
At T1, 365 fourth and 352 fifth graders completed the SCL, the Children's Somatization Inventory (CSI-C), and the Mood Questionnaire. Parents (n=564) completed the parental form of the CSI-C (CSI-P). Six months later, the stability of the SCL and the CSI-C was assessed.


RESULTS
The psychometric properties and stability of the SCL were good. Correlations with the CSI-C, negative moods, and the CSI-P complaints supported the validity. Moreover, the SCL was more strongly associated with negative moods and with parental reports of children's somatic complaints than the CSI-C.


CONCLUSIONS
The SCL is a suitable questionnaire for assessing somatic complaints in school-aged children.
Jellesma
Francine C
FC
Developmental Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands. fjellesma@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
Rieffe
Carolien
C
Terwogt
Mark Meerum
MM
D002648:Child; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires