FEARS OF CHILDREN AND THE CULTURAL-CONTEXT - THE TURKISH NORMS

The present study was undertaken to identify children's fears in terms of their age, gender and Socio Economic Status (SES) characteristics. Another aim of the study was the adaptation and the standardization o f the ''Fear Survey Schedule for Children'' (FSSC) to Turkish populati on and to determine its psychometric properties. FSSC was given to 123 7 Lower SES children aged 9-13 years. To understand the effects of soc ial and environmental factors the results were compared with 644 child ren from high socio-economic level and 118 children of Turkish immigra nt labourer families residing in Holland. The most prevalent 10 fear i tems in all three groups were also determined. Results indicated that girls had more intense and frequent fears at all age levels than boys. Low SES children reveal more fears compared to their high SES pears o f their self reported fears. Fears related to death and separation occ upy the top positions and religious fears that are mentioned very ofte n by children especially by those in the lower SES group. Test-retest reliability, internal consistency and the factorial structure of the s cale have proved it to be a valuable and reliable tool for research an d clinical purposes in Turkey.