Adaptation and Validation of a Social Support Scale for Preservice Preschool Teachers

Abstract

In the training of preservice preschool teachers, social support is regarded as a critical psychological and environmental resource that facilitates academic development and career development. However, there remains a lack of measurement instruments that adequately capture the learning context and training characteristics of preservice preschool teachers. To address this gap, the present study aimed to adapt and validate a social support scale specifically designed for preservice preschool teachers within the Chinese teacher education context. A total of 594 valid responses were collected from preservice preschool teachers enrolled in public normal colleges in Shandong Province, China. A two-stage research design was employed. In Stage 1, data collected from Sample 1 (n = 200) were used to conduct content validity assessment, item analysis, and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to preliminarily examine the factor structure of the scale. In Stage 2, an independent sample (Sample 2; n = 394) was used to perform confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to further verify the construct validity of the scale. The results supported a clear four-factor model comprising family support, teacher support, peer support, and college support. Model fit indices reached acceptable standards. Both the overall scale and its subdimensions demonstrated high levels of internal consistency and composite reliability, along with satisfactory convergent and discriminant validity. In addition, social support was found to be significantly associated with external variables such as professional identity and academic motivation, further supporting its criterion-related validity. In conclusion, the Social Support Scale for Preservice Preschool Teachers is a psychometrically sound instrument that can be used in both research and practice to assess social support among preservice preschool teachers and to inform the evaluation and optimization of support in teacher education.