A Malay Version of the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect Screening Tool for Children: A Study of Its Validity and Reliability

BACKGROUND: Childhood maltreatment is a global problem, for which the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN) has developed the Child Abuse Screening Tool–Child, Home Version (ICAST-CH) to obtain data concerning childhood maltreatment. The study aimed to translate the English version of the ICAST-CH into the Malay language and to assess its reliability and validity. METHODS: The original English version of the ICAST-CH was first translated into the Malay language. Its content and face validity were tested among five independent individuals. A cross-sectional study using the Malay version (ICAST-CH-M) was then conducted with 255 students in a secondary school in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. The data collected was used to examine the instrument’s internal consistency and construct validity. The best ICAST-CH-M model was achieved after varimax rotation application. RESULTS: The analysis showed that the Malay version of the ICAST-CH had satisfactory internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha ranging from 0.59–0.77. The exploratory factor analysis confirmed the validity of the underlying constructs into five domains in the Malay version, but they had to be re-classified as ‘physical and psychological abuse’, ‘neglect’, ‘sexual abuse’, ‘exposure to domestic violence’ and ‘exposure to community violence’. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that the ICAST-CH-M is satisfactorily reliable and valid for measuring child maltreatment in Malaysia.