Assessing Attentional Biases in Children with the Seven-item Attention to Positive and Negative Information Scale during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background. Attention to Positive and Negative Information Scale (APNIS) is a commonly used scale to measure attentional biases in adults. However, no research has validated the use of APNIS in primary school children and investigated the association between attentional biases and fear of COVID-19 among them. Method. Two samples of early adolescents were involved in the current research. The first sample consisted of 122 children from a primary school who completed the Chinese version of the APNIS (CAPNIS) in the classrooms. Sample two included 321 children who completed the CAPNIS, Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS), Attentional Control Scale (ACS), and Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCS) in the classrooms at the first assessment. They completed FCS again after 6 months at the second assessment. Results.The study revealed a CAPNIS with acceptable to good psychometric properties. Higher negative attentional bias, but not positive attentional bias predicted higher fear of COVID-19 after 6 months, controlling for fear of COVID-19, anxiety, and depression symptoms at the first assessment. Conclusions. The findings supported that the CAPNIS might be used to predict the development of fear related to the pandemic.