Validation of the Social Mistrust Scale in non-clinical and clinical samples of children aged 8–14 years living in Italy: convergence with anxiety and depression

Background Paranoia exists in the general population, both in adults and in children, and is a key feature of schizotypy and schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. Attempts to develop child-appropriate tools to assess childhood suspiciousness and its correlation with developmental psychopathology are underdeveloped but crucial. Aims This study examines the prevalence and structure of childhood mistrust and its correlations with internalising and externalising problems in non-clinical and clinical samples using a newly validated Italian Social Mistrust Scale (SMS). Methods Children aged 8–14 years old from a non-clinical (n=242) and a clinical sample with anxiety and/or mood disorder (n=44) were recruited. All children completed the SMS and a standardised battery of tests measuring schizotypal traits, anxiety, depression and internalising/externalising problems. Results The total Mistrust Score was positively skewed, with 50% of children scoring≤3 points and 15% scoring≥7 points. Factor analyses revealed a three-factor model (ie, General Mistrust, Home Mistrust and School Mistrust) replicating the original English SMS. As expected, childhood mistrust was positively correlated with schizotypal traits, anxiety and depression in the non-clinical sample (r=0.49, 0.42 and 0.54, respectively) and in the clinical sample (r=0.75, 0.51 and 0.85, respectively). Finally, the SMS showed an overall moderate internal reliability (α) in the non-clinical sample (α=0.74), and a good internal reliability in the clinical sample (α=0.83). Conclusions Consistent with previous studies, childhood mistrust—as measured by the newly translated Italian SMS—exists on a continuum of severity and is associated with higher levels of childhood psychopathology. Exploring social mistrust and suspiciousness in childhood can support clinicians and researchers, and could help develop preventive interventions during early development, particularly for children at risk of specific emotional and behavioural challenges.