Psychometric Properties and Measurement Invariance of the Generalized Tracking Questionnaire-Children

Abstract

Self-report measures of generalized patterns of rule-following are being developed in the last years including the Generalized Pliance Questionnaire (GPQ) and the Generalized Tracking Questionnaire (GTQ). Specifically, the GTQ is a 11-item self-report developed for adults that has shown excellent psychometric properties, a one-factor structure, and criterion validity in view of its positive correlations with executive functions tests. This study aims to develop the children's version of the GTQ (i.e., Generalized Tracking Questionnaire – Children, GTQ-C). In so doing, we adapted the vocabulary of some of the GTQ items and added an additional item (i.e., the GTQ-C consisted of 12 items). Afterward, the GTQ for children (i.e., GTQ-C) was administered to a sample of 730 Colombian children and adolescents from 7 to 17 years. A cross-validation study was conducted to analyze the factor structure of the questionnaire. The analysis showed that a one-factor structure showed a good fit to the data. All items of the GTQ-C showed good discrimination indexes and the whole questionnaire showed adequate internal consistency. The GTQ-C showed measurement invariance across gender and age group. In conclusion, the GTQ-C seems to be a valid and reliable measure of generalized tracking for children that might be used to analyze the developmental trajectories of tracking and its relationship with other relevant behavioral processes.