Development of Informant-rated self-esteem scale for children in early childhood

Abstract

Self-esteem determines the future direction of an individual’s behavioral, intellectual, and attitudinal development. Therefore, adults need to consciously foster children’s self-esteem in early childhood. In this study, we aimed to develop an informant-rated self-esteem scale for early childhood. Typically, a self-esteem scale can measure educational effects and help childcare providers or parents consider the kind of care a child needs based on real-life behaviors. Furthermore, easy to-understand questions were developed based on childcare providers’ and parents’ remarks. Factor analysis identified a 2-factor 10-item structure for the scale. Factor 1 was self-reliance and independence (childcare providers α=.87, parents α=.81) and Factor 2 was cooperativeness and sense of achievement motivation (childcare providers α=.80, parents α=.74). Next, a reproducibility survey (Factor1: childcare providers r=.72, parents r=.82, Factor 2: childcare providers r=.65,parents, r=.74), was performed to confirm scale reliability. In the childcare providers’ evaluations by homeroom and non-homeroom teachers for each factor, there was a significant difference between the high and low groups, confirming the validity of the scale.