Citation

Serna L, Nielsen E, Mattern N, Forness SR. Educ. Treat. Child. 2002; 25(4): 415-437.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, West Virginia University Press)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Very few definitive standards exist for school diagnosis of emotional or behavioral disorders in terms of measurements for symptoms versus functional impairment, ratings obtained from parents versus teachers, or various combinations of instruments. Such issues are even more complex in preschool children since diagnoses in children below age 6 are seldom studied and standards are inaccurate at best. In this study, different measures of symptoms and functional impairment were obtained on a sample of 285 Head Start children from diverse ethnic backgrounds. These included six instruments completed by teachers and two completed by parents. Clinical cut-off scores were used to identify children who could be considered at relatively serious risk for emotional or behavioral disorders. The at risk classifications for each measure were examined singly and in combination using gender, ethnicity, and an overall measure of psychiatric impairment as outcome variables. Identification of children considered at risk ranged from a low of 1% to a high of 34%, with considerable evidence of differential effects on gender or ethnicity for some measures and combinations of measures. Implications for choosing instruments to establish eligibility for emotional or behavioral disorders in preschoolers are discussed.

Language: en