The Extended Modified Maltreatment Classification System (EMMCS): A validation study

IF 3.4 2区心理学 Q1 FAMILY STUDIES

Child Abuse & Neglect Pub Date : 2025-07-07 DOI:10.1016/j.chiabu.2025.107587

Sebastien Monette , Sonia Hélie , Tonino Esposito , Nico Trocmé , Delphine Collin-Vézina

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

One way to measure maltreatment is to code the narratives in Child Protective Services (CPS) files on a standardized instrument. This serves to document dimensions of maltreatment—such as types/subtypes, severity, frequency and chronicity—difficult if not impossible to measure from administrative data. The instrument most commonly used for this purpose is the Modified Maltreatment Classification System (MMCS, English & Longscan, 1997). Few studies have focused on the psychometric properties of such instruments.

Objective

This study sought to present the Extended Modified Maltreatment Classification System (EMMCS) and inter-rater reliability and convergent validity data for this updated instrument.

Participants and setting

The convenience sample was composed of the CPS files of 240 children 0 to 17 years old reported to a single CPS agency in Québec (Canada) and for which the allegations were declared substantiated by CPS practitioner.

Methods

Written narratives were coded on two instruments: the EMMCS (two coders) and the form used in the Étude d'incidence québécoise sur les situations évaluées en protection de la jeunesse - short form (FEIQ-SF, one coder). Inter-rater reliability was assessed by calculating kappas and intra-class correlations for all variables generated by the EMMCS for two coders and convergent validity by measuring the relationship between the EMMCS maltreatment variables and: a) the FEIQ-SF maltreatment variables and b) the FEIQ-SF child's functioning problems on the FEIQ.

Results

Inter-rater agreement on nearly all EMMCS variables (97 %) proved excellent, and EMMCS maltreatment type variables showed good convergent validity with FEIQ-SF variables (narrow convergent validity) and with indicators of child's functioning problems (broad convergent validity).

Conclusions

Overall, the results of our study indicate that the EMMCS possesses excellent inter-rater reliability and good convergent validity. These promising results underscore the potential of the EMMCS to become a reference in the field.

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扩展修正虐待分类系统（EMMCS）：验证性研究

测量虐待的一种方法是将儿童保护服务（CPS）文件中的叙述编码在标准化工具上。这有助于记录虐待的维度，如类型/亚型、严重程度、频率和慢性，这些很难（如果不是不可能的话）从行政数据中衡量。在这方面最常用的工具是修订虐待分类系统（MMCS）。Longscan, 1997)。很少有研究关注这些工具的心理测量特性。目的介绍扩展改良虐待分类系统（EMMCS）及其信度和收敛效度数据。参与者和设置方便样本由240名0至17岁儿童的CPS档案组成，这些儿童报告给加拿大qusamubec的一个CPS机构，CPS从业者宣布这些指控属实。方法采用EMMCS（2台编码器）和Étude《意外事件-青年保护-短格式》（FEIQ-SF， 1台编码器）对书面叙述进行编码。通过计算两个编码者的EMMCS产生的所有变量的kappas和类内相关性来评估量表间信度，并通过测量EMMCS虐待变量与：(a) FEIQ- sf虐待变量和(b) FEIQ- sf儿童在FEIQ上的功能问题之间的关系来评估收敛效度。结果EMMCS中虐待类型变量与FEIQ-SF变量（狭义收敛效度）和儿童功能问题指标（广义收敛效度）具有较好的收敛效度。结论研究结果表明，EMMCS量表具有良好的信度和收敛效度。这些有希望的结果强调了EMMCS成为该领域参考的潜力。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Child Abuse & Neglect Multiple-

CiteScore

7.40

自引率

10.40%

发文量

397

期刊介绍： Official Publication of the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect. Child Abuse & Neglect The International Journal, provides an international, multidisciplinary forum on all aspects of child abuse and neglect, with special emphasis on prevention and treatment; the scope extends further to all those aspects of life which either favor or hinder child development. While contributions will primarily be from the fields of psychology, psychiatry, social work, medicine, nursing, law enforcement, legislature, education, and anthropology, the Journal encourages the concerned lay individual and child-oriented advocate organizations to contribute.