Construct Validity of the Autism Spectrum Disorders-Child Version (ASD-C) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL)

Previous researchers have demonstrated that Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is related to increased prevalence of other psychological disorders. Comorbid disorders increase the difficulties in socialization and communication already experienced by children with ASD. These symptoms often require additional intervention techniques and should be identified as early as possible to beget the best prognosis. The Autism Spectrum Disorders – Child Version (ASD-C) is an informant based assessment battery specifically designed to measure symptoms of ASD, comorbid disorders, and challenging behavior in children with ASD. The reliability and validity of this assessment has been established in previous studies, but there is no research to date that compares the measure to the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) to establish construct validity of both measures. Participants in the current study included 114 children classified into three categories: ASD (n=14), psychopathology (n=71), and controls (n=29). Parents completed the ASD-C and CBCL as part of comprehensive psychological evaluations. Following a content analysis assessing correlations between items on the two measures, a Multitrait-Multimethod Matrix was constructed to assess convergent and divergent validity. All subscales and composites from both measures demonstrated convergence. Additionally, receiving operator characteristic (ROC) curves were utilized to examine the diagnostic validity of the two measures for ASD, Anxiety Disorder, ADHD, and ODD. Both measures demonstrated diagnostic utility for clinicians to screen for psychopathology in children with and without ASD. Time and cost effective parent report measures would fill a gap in the provision of mental health services to low SES children and their families