The Child Behavior Rating Form (CBRF) was adapted for use with children having mental retardation and was named the Nisonger CBRF. Independent factor analyses of parent and teacher ratings for 369 children produced 2 Social Competence subscales and 6 Problem Behavior subscales. Internal consistency was generally high and parent-teacher agreement…

Aserts that it is unclear how the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional ratings link to other critical child and family risk factors. Identifies questions regarding how well individual dimensions of social behavior are measured and concerns about the partial overlap between competent and problem behavior. Expresses concerns about the…

Early detection of developmental and behavioral/mental health problems is greatly facilitated when quality instruments are deployed. This article describes how to identify accurate measures and presents standards for screening tests. Included is a table delineating accurate tools for primary care: typically those relying on information from…

This study compared behavioral presentation of toddlers with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) and toddlers with global developmental delay (DD) or developmental language disorder (DLD) who display some characteristics of ASD using the diagnostic algorithm items from the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Generic (ADOS), the Childhood Autism…

The "Handbook of Youth Prevention Science" describes current research and practice in mental health preventive interventions for youth. Traditional prevention research focused on preventing specific disorders, e.g. substance abuse, conduct disorders, or criminality. This produced "silos" of isolated knowledge about the…

Determined the utility of the Behavior Problem Checklist (BPC) with preschool children. Found the BPC sensitive in differentiating clinical from nonclinical groups. Findings suggest that the Behavior Problem Checklist, although not specifically designed to assess preschool age children, may be effective with this population. (Author)

Reliability and construct validity of over 1,000 mothers' responses to the Disruptive Behavior Rating Scale-Parent Version were studied. Results indicated excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability on three subscales (Oppositional, Distractible, and Impulsive-Hyperactive) but only marginal reliability on the Antisocial Conduct…

Data from 278 children (ages 18-35 months) were used to norm the Language Development Survey (LDS) and the Child Behavioral Checklist. Vocabulary scores increased markedly with age, were higher in girls, and were modestly correlated with socioeconomic level. Correlations between LDS scores and checklist problem scores were low. (Contains…

The Walker-McConnell Scale of Social Competence and School Adjustment is intended for screening and identifying elementary-aged school children with social skill deficits. The instrument is divided into two components covering adaptive classroom behavior and interpersonal social skills. This paper describes the test's administration, summation of…

Assessed psychometric properties of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ:S-E), a screening instrument for 3- to 63-month-olds. Found that internal consistency was generally high. Test-retest reliability between parents' classifications was .94. Overall sensitivity was .82; overall specificity was .92. Parents reported easy…

The document reports a study to determine if there is a higher incidence of behavior disorders or language differences in a group of 50 2-year-old Ss who have multiple minor physical anomalies as compared to a group with four or fewer anomalies, and to determine if there is a significant correlation between behavior disorders and language…

Evaluated special needs referral system in an urban Head Start program. The Early Intervention Screening Profile completed by independent raters revealed that, in the first assessment, all referred children had speech/language problems, some also showing emotional or behavioral problems. Teacher-completed EISPs with a second sample identified over…

Notes that articulating existence and cause of referral biases is critical to more effective preschool services. Maintains that until high child poverty, exposure to violence, and shortage of safe and stimulating environments are addressed, escalating rates of serious child emotional/behavioral problems will continue. Asserts that we must question…

Background: This study assessed whether a Learning Disability Service should develop a specific autism strategy or provide services on a needs-led basis. Materials and methods: An autism screening questionnaire had been used to identify individuals scoring above a cut-off who had (n = 9) or had not (n = 15) received a formal diagnosis of autism. A…

A principal components analysis of the Teacher Rating Scale-Child (TRS-C) of the Behavior Assessment System for Children was conducted with a cross-sectional cohort of 659 children in Grades 1 to 5. A predictive validity study was then conducted with a 2-year longitudinal sample of 206 children. The results suggested that scores from the resulting…