Self-Report Coping Measure – Child Version

Abstract

The Self-Report Coping Measure – Child Version (SRCM-CV) is a specialized self-report measure designed to assess the various ways in which elementary school children respond to stressful interpersonal events, such as arguments or conflicts with peers. Developed primarily by Causey and Dubow (1992), this instrument utilizes a multi-factor structure to categorize coping responses into distinct theoretical dimensions. The scale helps researchers and clinicians understand normative and maladaptive coping patterns in youth, providing critical insights into children’s emotional regulation and behavioral responses under stress.

The full version of the SRCM-CV comprises 34 items, although a validated short form consisting of 20 items has also been developed and utilized, particularly in French-Canadian adaptations (Hébert, Parent, & Daignault, 2007). Responses are typically scored on a 5-point Likert scale reflecting the frequency of use of a particular coping behavior.

Keywords

Coping strategies, childhood psychology, self-report measure, elementary school children, problem solving, internalizing, externalizing, social support, psychological assessment.

Authors

D. L. Causey, E. F. Dubow (Original Scale Development, 1992), M. Hébert, N. Parent, I. V. Daignault (French-Canadian Adaptation and Short Form Development, 2007).

Purpose

The primary purpose of the SRCM-CV is to provide a standardized, psychometrically sound method for quantifying the specific coping strategies employed by children when faced with common stressors, specifically interpersonal conflicts. Unlike observer-rated scales, the self-report format allows for direct access to the child’s perception of their own cognitive and behavioral responses.

The scale is crucial for research exploring the developmental trajectory of coping mechanisms and identifying early risk factors associated with maladaptive responses. It helps differentiate between active, problem-focused coping styles (e.g., seeking solutions) and avoidant or emotion-focused styles (e.g., internalizing or distancing behaviors).

Construct

The SRCM-CV is structured around a multi-dimensional construct of coping, reflecting both functional and dysfunctional strategies. The scale measures five distinct factors, which capture the breadth of children’s responses to conflict:

• Problem Solving: Actions aimed at changing the situation or environment to resolve the conflict.
• Seeking Social Support: Attempts to solicit help, advice, or emotional comfort from peers, family members, or teachers.
• Internalizing: Emotion-focused responses characterized by withdrawal, self-blame, worry, or sadness (e.g., “I cry about it,” “I worry too much about it”).
• Externalizing: Behavioral responses characterized by outward expression of distress, aggression, or anger directed toward others or objects (e.g., “I yell to let off steam,” “I get mad and throw or hit something”).
• Distancing: Cognitive or behavioral efforts to minimize the emotional impact of the stressor, often through avoidance, denial, or minimizing the importance of the event.

Validity

The original development of the SRCM-CV (Causey & Dubow, 1992) focused on establishing the construct validity of the five-factor model through rigorous statistical analysis suitable for elementary school populations. Subsequent validation studies, such as the 2007 French-Canadian validation by Hébert et al., confirmed the structural integrity of the factors across different cultural contexts and supported the development of a psychometrically robust short form.

Evidence for validity typically relies on demonstrating that the subscales correlate meaningfully with other measures of psychological adjustment, such as indices of depression, anxiety, and social functioning, confirming that the scale measures theoretically expected coping behaviors. For example, studies often show positive correlations between Externalizing scores and behavioral problems.

Reliability

Internal consistency reliability, generally measured using Cronbach’s alpha coefficients, has been reported as acceptable to strong across the five subscales, particularly within the 2007 validation of the short form. The coefficients demonstrate that the items within each factor are highly correlated and measure the same underlying construct.

The reported Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for the five factors, based on the adaptation study, are:

• Problem Solving: .86
• Seeking Social Support: .85
• Internalizing: .72
• Externalizing: .74
• Distancing: .76

These values suggest high reliability for the Problem Solving and Social Support factors, and adequate reliability for the Internalizing, Externalizing, and Distancing factors, meeting standard thresholds for use in research.

Factor Analysis

Factor analysis confirmed a stable five-factor structure underlying the children’s self-reported coping responses. The factors and the item numbers corresponding to the original 34-item version are as follows:

• Problem Solving: Items 2, 6, 10, 14, 18, 23, 27, 33.
• Seeking Social Support: Items 1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 22, 31, 34.
• Internalizing: Items 7, 8, 12, 16, 19, 25, 32. This factor includes behaviors often associated with emotional distress or withdrawal.
• Externalizing: Items 4, 21, 26, 30. This factor captures outward aggressive or disruptive behaviors.
• Distancing: Items 3, 11, 15, 20, 24, 28, 29. This factor involves avoidance and cognitive reframing to minimize the stressor.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-Report Psychometric Scale

Format: The scale uses a 5-point Likert response format for all items:

1. Never
2. Hardly ever
3. Sometimes
4. Most of the time
5. Always

The scale exists in a 34-item long form and a 20-item short form.

Language Available: English (Original), French-Canadian (Adaptation).

Population Group: Children and Youth.

Age Group: Elementary school age (typically 8 to 12 years).

Population Details: Suitable for use in general population samples as well as clinical samples, such as those studying boys with Autism Spectrum Disorders (Pouw et al., 2013). The context focuses on coping with peer conflict.

Test Methodology: Respondents are presented with a specific prompt (e.g., “When I have an argument or a fight with a friend…”) and then asked to rate how frequently they engage in the listed behaviors or thoughts (the items) in that situation.

The original PDF of the instrument can be downloaded here: https://martinehebert.uqam.ca/upload/files/EVISSA/Mesure/3%20SRCS.pdf

Keywords

Child coping, stress response, peer conflict, psychometrics, Problem Solving, Internalizing, Externalizing behaviors.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A (Information not available in source)

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A (Information not available in source)

Correspondence Address: N/A (Information not available in source)

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The original scale was developed in 1992 by Causey and Dubow. The French-Canadian adaptation and validation of the short form were conducted in 2007 by Hébert, Parent, and Daignault. Since the instrument is often made available through academic research papers and institutional websites (as evidenced by the provided PDF link), it is frequently used for non-commercial academic research purposes, though specific permissions for clinical or commercial use should be sought from the respective copyright holders.

Reference’s

• Causey, D. L., & Dubow, E. F. (1992). Development of a self-report coping measure for elementary school children. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 21(1), 47-59. doi:10.1207/s15374424jccp2101_8

• Hébert, M., Parent, N., & Daignault, I. V. (2007). The French-Canadian version of the Self-Report Coping Scale: Estimates of the reliability, validity, and development of a short form. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 40(1), 2-15.

• Pouw, L.B.C., Rieffe, C., Stockmann, L., & Gadow, K.D. (2013). The link between emotion regulation, social functioning, and depression in boys with ASD. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 7, 549-556.

Items of the Self-Report Coping Measure – Child Version

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

When I have an argument or a fight with a friend…

1. I tell a friend or a family member what happened.
2. I try to think of different ways to solve it.
3. I make believe nothing happened.
4. I take it out on others because I feel sad or angry.
5. I talk to somebody about how it made me feel.
6. I change something so things will work out.
7. I go off by myself.
8. I become so upset that I can’t talk to anyone.
9. I get help from a friend.
10. I decide on one way to deal with the problem and I do it.
11. I forget the whole thing.
12. I worry too much about it.
13. I ask a friend for advice.
14. I do something to make up for it.
15. I tell myself it doesn’t matter.
16. I cry about it.
17. I ask a family member for advice.
18. I know there are things I can do to make it better.
19. I just feel sorry for myself.
20. I refuse to think about it.
21. I yell to let off steam.
22. I ask someone who has had this problem what he or she would do.
23. I go over in my mind what to do or say.
24. I do something else to take my mind off of it.
25. I worry that others will think badly of me.
26. I curse out loud.
27. I try to understand why this happened to me.
28. I say I don’t care.
29. I ignore it when people say something.
30. I get mad and throw or hit something.
31. I get help from a family member.
32. I get mad at myself for doing something that I shouldn’t have done.
33. I try extra hard to keep this from happening again.
34. I talk to the teacher about it.

Short form of the Self-Report Coping Measure – Child Version (Adaptation: Hebert‚ M‚ Parent‚ N.‚ & Daignault‚ I.V. (2007))

When I have an argument or a fight with a friend…

1. I try to think of different ways to solve it
2. I make believe nothing happened
3. I take ‘It out on others because I feel sad or angry
4. I decide on one way to deal with the problem and I do it.
5. I worry too much about it.
6. I ask a friend for advice.
7. I do something to make up for it.
8. I tell myself it doesn’t matter.
9. I cry about it.
10. I ask a family member for advice.
11. I know there are things I can do to make it better.
12. I refuse to think about it.
13. I yell to let off steam.
14. I ask someone who has had this problem what he or she would do.
15. I worry that others will think badly of me.
16. I curse out loud.
17. I say I don’t care.
18. I get mad and throw or hit something.
19. I get help from a family member.
20. I get mad at myself for doing something that I shouldn’t have done.