The GO4KIDDS Brief Adaptive Scale.

Abstract

Background: Accurate measurement of adaptive behaviour is important in both clinical and research contexts. While several good clinical measures exist, as well as brief research measures for adults with intellectual disability, there is need for a brief and efficient measure for research with children and youth. We present preliminary psychometric properties of a new scale we developed for such purposes, the GO4KIDDS Brief Adaptive Behaviour Scale.

Materials and methods: A large sample (n = 432) of parents of youth (aged 3-20) with intellectual disability and/or ASD completed an online survey that included the new scale. A subsample of these parents (n = 204) also completed the Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised Short Form (Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised Comprehensive Manual, 1996 and Riverside Publishing).

Results: The new scale has good internal consistency and correlates strongly with the Scales of Independent Behavior, thus supporting its reliability and validity.

Conclusions: Although we do not recommend its use for clinical purposes, the GO4KIDDS Brief Adaptive Behaviour Scale may be useful for survey research with parents of children and youth with developmental disabilities.