The childhood trauma questionaire: validity, reliability and factor structure among adolescents in Calabar, Nigeria

Introduction: Child abuse is a cause of increasing concern globally and is known to have significant negative effects on the physical and psychological well-being of children. Validated instruments for screening child abuse in Nigeria are scarce.Aim: This study aimed to determine the validity, reliability and factor structure of the 28 item version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire among Secondary School students in Calabar South, Cross River state, Nigeria.Methodology: In a cross-sectional study, a sample of 161 students was drawn from two secondary schools in Calabar South, Cross River State, using multi-stage technique. A socio-demographic questionnaire, the Childhood Trauma questionnaire (CTQ-28), the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) and the Self-reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) were administered to the selected students. Convergent validity between CTQ and other scales, reliability using Cronbach alpha and the factor structure of CTQ using principal component analysis were assessed. The data was analyzed with the Statistical Package for Social Sciences, 21st edition (SPSS-21).Results: Cronbach alpha was 0.80. Internal consistency for the subscales were 0.69 for emotional abuse, 0.60 for physical abuse, 0.60 for sexual abuse, 0.79 for emotional neglect and 0.21 for physical neglect. For convergent validity, correlation coefficients with the GHQ-12 and the SRQ-20 were 0.39 and 0.45 respectively (p<0.05). Principal Components Analysis yielded a four factor solution.Conclusion: The 28 item version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire has acceptable reliability and validity and can be useful as a screen for child abuse among adolescents in Nigeria.Key words: CTQ, validity, reliability, factor structure, adolescent