Factor Structure and Concurrent Validity of the British Perceived Inequality in Childhood Scale in a Sample of American College Students

Societal income inequality has been associated with worse health outcomes, including a greater burden of mental illness. However, validated individual measures of relative income are scarce and rarely included in mental health assessments. The psychometric properties of the British Perceived Inequality in Childhood Scale (PICS) were examined in an American college student sample. Eight hundred graduate- and professional- level students at a public university participated. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported the PICS three-factor structure measuring childhood deprivation relative to a United States reference group and neighborhood reference group as well as family social capital. Additionally, the internal consistency was high and the concurrent validity of the PICS was supported by positive correlations with the MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Status in childhood and objective measures of parental income and education. These findings replicate prior research supporting the validity and reliability of the PICS, now in an American college student sample.