Measuring CHAOS? Evaluating the short-form Confusion, Hubbub And Order Scale

Abstract

The Confusion, Hubbub and Order Scale (CHAOS) – short form – is a survey tool intended to capture information about home environments. It is widely used in studies of child and adolescent development and psychopathology, particularly twin studies. The original long form of the scale comprised 15 items and was validated in a sample of infants in the 1980s. The short form of the scale was developed in the late 1990s and contains six items, including four from the original scale, and two new items. This short form has not been validated and is the focus of this study. We use five samples (N=10,898) from studies in Australia, the UK, and the USA, to examine the measurement properties of the CHAOS short form. We first compare alternate confirmatory factor models for each group; we next test between-group configural, metric and scalar invariance; finally, we examine predictive validity of the scale in each sample under different conditions. We find evidence that a two-factor configuration of the six items is more appropriate than the commonly used one-factor model. Second, we find measurement non-invariance across groups at the metric invariance step, with items performing differently depending on the sample. We also find inconsistent results in tests of predictive validity using family-level socioeconomic status and academic achievement as criterion variables. The results caution the continued use of the short-form CHAOS in its current form and recommend future revisions and development of the scale for use in developmental research.

The developmental interplay between household chaos and educational achievement from age 9 through 16 years: A genetically informative study

“…These findings confirm our hypothesis and highlight the bidirectional relation between educational achievement and household chaos, although earlier studies prioritised the effects of household chaos on educational achievement over the Special Collection: npj Science of Learning January 2023 CHAOS & EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT 29 reverse direction of influence (Garrett-Peters et al, 2016;Larsen et al, 2022;Martin et al, 2012;Marsh et al, 2020;Vernon-Feagans et al, 2012). We observed small effect sizes for the cross-lagged influences of household chaos on educational achievement and vice versa over time.…”

“…At 9, 12, and 16 years, the twins' perceptions of chaos in the family home were assessed using a short version of the original 15-item Confusion, Hubbub and Order Scale (CHAOS; Matheny et al, 1995). The short form has been widely used (Larsen et al, 2022) and assesses the level of routine, noise, and general environmental confusion with six items: 'I have a regular bedtime routine' (scoring reversed), 'You can't hear yourself think in our home', 'It's a real zoo in our home',…”

“…Children from families of lower SES experience on average more chaotic home environments, for example they tend to be exposed to more road traffic noise (e.g., Dale et al, 2015;Havard et al, 2011), share their home with a greater number of people (Bradley & Caldwell, 1984), and move homes more often (Suglia, Duarte, & Sandel, 2011). Accordingly, family SES and household chaos have been shown to correlate on average around -.30 in UK population cohort studies with ~ 7,000 and ~ 16,000 families, with higher SES families reporting living in less chaotic households (Petrill et al, 2004;Seidler & Ritchie, 2018; see also Larsen et al, 2022). Some studies have suggested that household chaos predicts children's outcomes beyond or independent of their family SES (e.g., Deater-Deckard et al, 2009;Hart et al, 2007; Special Collection: npj Science of Learning Seidler & Ritchie, 2018), presumably because it is the physical manifestation of family background inequality (i.e., 'the score') that frames children's developmental 'reality' 1 .…”

“…First, our analyses were based on the six-item short form of the original 15item CHAOS measure (Matheny et al, 1995). Because it is unclear if and to what extent the short CHAOS form captures the construct space of the longer version, using the current short CHAOS form has been cautioned (Larsen et al, 2022), even though the measure has been widely used (Hanscombe et al, 2011;Hannigan et al, 2017;Hart et al, 2007;Seidler & Ritchie, 2018).…”

“…Experiencing household chaos in early life has been shown to predict a wide range of adverse childhood outcomes, including poorer social-emotional functioning, educational achievement, and behavioural adjustment (e.g., Evans, 2006;Larsen et al, 2022;Martin, Razza, & Brooks-Gunn, 2012;Marsh, Dobson, & Maddison, 2020). These associations are often interpreted as environmental causes for developmental differences (i.e., household chaos → development), for example in the way that living chaotic family homes limits parents' abilities to accurately read, interpret, and respond to their children's needs (Vernon-Feagans, Garrett-Peters, DeMarco, & Bratsch-Hines, 2012).…”