Abstract
The aim of this study was the adaptation of the Everyday Discrimination Scale to Portuguese youth. Scale items were subject to translation and adaptation, and two items were incorporated into the scale to increase construct validity. After establishing face validity, data from 2996 high school students were subject to Exploratory Factorial Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). The EFA results portrayed a two-factor solution - Unfair Treatment and Personal Rejection - with four items each (seven items of the original scale and one prepared to this study). The CFA validated a hierarchical model in which the two factors observed in the EFA are subordinated to a second order latent factor, the Perception of Discrimination. The instrument was able to distinguish the perceptions of discrimination felt by prejudiced groups, since significant differences were observed between black and white participants, and between lesbian, gay and bisexual participants and their heterosexual counterparts. The instrument partially explains variations in mental health levels, given the observation of a negative correlation between perceived discrimination and mental health. The study concludes that this adapted version of the scale is a proper resource to the measurement and comparison of the perceptions of discrimination felt by the young.
Validation; confirmatory factorial analysis; discrimination
