Children’s Depression Inventory: Testing Measurement Invariance for the Hierarchical Factor Model Across Children and Adolescents in a Clinic-Referred Sample

Abstract

The Children’s Depression Inventory is a self-report scale for screening depressive disorders in children and adolescents. The original model proposed by Kovacs has a hierarchical factor structure: Five first-order and a single second-order factors. This study used confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine support for this model. It also examined measurement invariance of this model across selfratings provided by clinic-referred children (N=459) and adolescents (N=343), and the differences in the first- and second-order latent factor mean scores across these groups. The findings supported the hierarchical factor structure, and also full measurement invariance for this model across the gr..