The teacher expectations and values for suicide prevention scale: Confirmatory factor analysis and validation

Background: Teachers play a critical role in youth suicide prevention, yet few psychometrically sound instruments exist to measure teachers’ expectations and values regarding suicide prevention. Aims: This study examined the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Teacher Expectations and Values for Suicide Prevention (TEVSP) Scale. Method: The TEVSP was administered to 500 teachers in the United States. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to determine the factor structure and bivariate correlations were used to investigate convergent and discriminant validity. Mann–Whitney U tests investigated group differences in TEVSP scores between participants who had received suicide training and those who had not. Results: Results support a three-factor hierarchical model with strong internal consistency and evidence of validity. Significant differences were found in TEVSP scores between groups. Limitations: There is a need to further explore the psychometric properties of the scale across samples and face-to-face methods. Conclusion: The TEVSP is a sound instrument that can be used to measure teachers’ expectations and values for suicide prevention.