Testing the Psychometric Properties of the Habits of Health Scale for Children and Youth

Abstract

This paper describes the validity testing we performed on one-half of the Habits of Health and Habits of Mind© model to increase research on the daily habits of children and youth and to substantiate the teaching and dissemination of the model with greater confidence. Child and adolescent health habits were tested with a new Habits of Health Scale (HHS). The study purpose was to test the construct and criterion validity of the habits of health measurement subscales which included physical activity, nutrition, relationships, safety, and hygiene behaviors. Two specific hypotheses were tested. The first hypothesis was that the HHS items would show acceptable factorial validity. The second hypothesis was the HHS factors would demonstrate high criterion validity, or the sensitivity of the scale to detect differences and associations that theoretically should exist. The HHS factors were expected to differ based on participants’ gender, perceived health status, perceived academic success, Body Mass Index (BMI), and multiple health behaviors. Results showed that each subscale demonstrated acceptable internal consistency and criterion validity. Health patterns and routines of kids can now be measured by the Habits of Health Scale, which is a multi-behavioral assessment tool that assesses the health status of children and youth.