An Initial Evaluation of a Measure of Social‐Emotional Skills Among Brazilian Children and Adolescents

ABSTRACT Growing evidence suggests that providing children and adolescents with explicit opportunities to learn social and emotional skills during elementary and secondary school can support positive developmental outcomes. However, understanding the benefits of social‐emotional learning (SEL) programs requires an ability to measure potential changes in SEL skills. This study investigates the factor structure, reliability, and preliminary percentile norms of a new SEL measure for use in Brazil. The measure is aligned with the Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning's (CASEL) SEL competencies and was then administered to 7728 participants between the ages of 9–17 years old. Results confirmed a five‐factor model that was well‐aligned with the CASEL framework. Internal consistency, test‐retest reliability, and initial criterion‐related validity provided further support for the constructs. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.