Publication date: Oct 10, 2024

The COVID-19 Exposure and Family Impact Scale, Adolescent and Young Adult Version (CEFIS-AYA; Schwartz, L. A. , Lewis, A. M. , Alderfer, M. A. , Vega, G. , Barakat, L. P. , King-Dowling, S. , Psihogios, A. M. , Canter, K. S. , Crosby, L. , Arasteh, K. , Enlow, P. , Hildenbrand, A. K. , Kassam-Adams, N. , Pai, A. , Phan, T. L. , Price, J. , Schultz, C. L. , Sood, E. , Wood, J. , & Kazak, A. (2022). COVID-19 exposure and family impact scales for adolescents and young adults. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 47, 631-640. https://doi. org/10. 1093/jpepsy/jsac036) was developed to assess the pandemic’s effects on adolescents and young adults (AYA). Via principal component analysis, measure developers examined the structure and reliability of the CEFIS-AYA and identified seven exposure and five impact components. This study built upon prior work through use of item response theory (IRT) models to characterize the dimensionality of the CEFIS-AYA, determine the strength of relations between items and underlying trait(s), and examine associations between trait scores and pandemic-related distress. This was a secondary analysis of data collected between July 2020 and July 2021 from three studies of emerging adults (ages 18-29; N = 834). The CEFIS-AYA structure was multidimensional, with the strongest support for five traits. Trait 1 represented pandemic impact on social/emotional functioning and self-care. Trait 2 reflected other pandemic disruptions. Trait 3 represented pandemic disruptions to education and/or other milestones. Trait 4 represented pandemic impact on physical well-being. Trait 5 assessed pandemic disruptions to work/financial circumstances. Item loadings and parameters indicated variability in how consistently trait level was associated with item endorsement. Trait scores did not predict distress, except that increases in Trait 3 were associated with lower distress. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the CEFIS-AYA among emerging adults using a statistical framework better suited for modeling categorical data. The identified dimensional structure was relatively consistent with the initial psychometric evaluation of the CEFIS-AYA, albeit more parsimonious. However, replication is critical in light of sample demographic characteristics.

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