Social Communication Functioning: An Appraisal of Current AssessmentTools through the Lens of the International Classification of Functioning,Disability, and Health â Child & Youth Version

Abstract

Abstract Objective: Social communication, or the use of language in social interactions, is critical to everyday human functioning. Although widely recognized as a key aspect of pediatric speech-language pathology practice, there is currently no consistently used approach to how social communication functioning is assessed for this population. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health – Child and Youth version (ICF-CY) offers a framework for describing social communication functioning, and thus how well it is represented in current parent- and teacher-report assessment tools for preschool and school-age social communication. Method: Functional dimensions of social communication were identified from chapters of the ICF-CY. These functional dimensions were used to appraise the extent to which current pediatric social communication assessment tools are representative of social communication functioning. 11 parent- and teacher-report tools were appraised. Results: Current social communication assessment tools for children were found to represent the foundational functional dimensions of social communication in its broadest sense. However, these assessment tools did not adequately represent the functional dimensions of specific social communicative contexts (e.g., Domestic Life). Further, these tools did not adequately represent the impact of physical context or conversational partner on social communication functioning. Conclusions: The ICF-CY framework revealed that the appraised social communication assessments provide a partial description of children’s social communication functioning. Collaborative interprofessional interaction, supplemental and new assessments are needed to achieve the necessary authentic assessment of social communication functioning to achieve meaningful evidence based intervention.