Translation and adaptation of the family climate for road safety scale to a Spanish speaking population using confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory structural equational modeling

The Family Climate for Road Safety Scale (FCRSS) was originally developed and validated in Israel to assess young drivers’ perception of their family values, practices, and priorities regarding safe driving. The scale consists of seven factors representing various aspects of the parent-offspring relationship relating to safe driving: Modeling, Feedback, Communication, Monitoring, Messages, Limits, and Noncommitment to Safety. The present research aimed to adapt and validate a Spanish-language version of the FCRSS in Argentina via two separate studies. Study 1 (n = 1071) examined the FCRSS factor structure and internal consistency and the associations between FCRSS factors and sex, age, and self-reported traffic crashes. Study 2 (n = 487) provide further evidence of the factor structure and internal consistency in a second sample and examined the associations between FCRSS dimensions on the one hand, and measures of attitude towards traffic safety and reckless driving style on the other. The results indicate that a seven-factor model consistent with the original FCRSS provides the best representation of the scale dimensionality in both samples. All factors yielded good internal consistency reliability coefficients, and as predicted significant differences in FCRSS scores were found between women and men. Greater parental monitoring was negatively associated with traffic crash involvement. Finally, theoretically expected associations were found between FCRSS scores and attitude towards risky driving and the risky driving style. On the whole, the two studies present convincing evidence in support of the validity and reliability of the FCRSS in Argentina.