Evaluating the reliability and validity of the Self-Compassion Scale adapted for children

This study introduces the Self-Compassion Scale adapted for Children (SCS-C) and presents psychometric findings regarding its reliability and validity. A sample of 382 students in 4th to 7th grade provided data on the SCS-C and measures of mindfulness, self-concept, indicators of well-being, empathic-related responding, and prosocial goals. Teachers provided data on students’ social and emotional competence and empathy/sympathy. Results indicated a two-factor structure for the SCS-C with negatively-worded items and positively-worded items forming two discrete subscales each with high internal consistency. As predicted, students’ scores on the SCS-C were significantly related to multiple indicators of social and emotional well-being, demonstrating preliminary evidence of convergent validity. In addition, scores on the SCS-C were found to differ across grade level, with students in 5th grade reporting higher scores on the SCS-C than students in 4th grade and students in 6th grade. This study provides insight into the factor structure of the SCS-C, as well as the relations of self-compassion to other indicators of social and emotional well-being in childhood and pre-adolescence. Limitations and future directions are discussed with regard to the relevance of the SCS-C for research and applications.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat