The Validity of the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders Revised (SCARED-R) Scale and Sub-Scales in Swedish Youth

We evaluated the clinical utility of the Swedish SCARED-R in child- and adolescent psychiatric outpatients (n = 239) and validated it against Longitudinal Expert All Data (LEAD) DSM IV diagnoses based on the Children’s Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (KSADS) and subsequent clinical work-up and treatment outcome. The SCARED-R total score and subscales had acceptable sensitivity/specificity for child and parent reports for cut-offs based on Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) curves, with mostly moderate area under the curve. Sensitivity ranged from 75% (parent rated social anxiety) to 79% [child rated Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)]. Specificity, ranged from 60% for child-rated GAD to 88% for parent rated social anxiety. Parent-child agreement was moderate, and each informant provided unique information contributing to most diagnoses. In conclusion, the SCARED-R is useful for screening anxiety symptoms in clinical populations. However, it cannot replace interview based diagnoses, nor is it adequate to use just one informant.