Factorial and criterion validity of scores of a measure of belonging in youth development programs

Many youth development programs, including the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, feature belonging as a central piece in their theories of change. From a psychometric perspective, little is known about measures of belonging. This research examined the factorial validity, internal consistency, and predictive validity of scores from one measure of belonging to an after-school youth development program. Confirmatory factor analysis yielded a five-item measure from a calibration analysis that demonstrated "tight" cross validity in a cross-validation sample as well as factorial invariance between females and males. Internal consistency estimates for this 5-item scale exceeded .90 in both samples. Belonging scores were positively related to actual program attendance over a 6-month period, self-reported attendance in the last week, and protective factors found in communities. Belonging scores were moderately and negatively related to community-based risk factors.