Psychometric Properties of Autism Spectrum Disorders Screening Assessment Tools: Systematic Review

Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Ehteshami, S., Mirzakhani Araghi, N., et al. (2023).

Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 37, 117.

This systematic review investigates the psychometrics of various screening tool designed to identify children on the autism spectrum.

Not stated

2000 to May 22, 2023

Published, peer-reviewed studies of any design

132

This review located 35 unique screening and assessment tools designed to identify children on the autism spectrum. Each of the tools had its own advantages and limitations, and all differed by targeted age, investigated domains, implementation technique, available languages, scoring, number of items, and duration of assessment. <br /><br />Due to this heterogeneity, the authors of this review recommend that tools "be selected and used according to the goals of the researchers and the therapists" (e.g., direct observation of child performance, assessment of family attitudes, comprehensive assessment; p. 1). <br /><br />Specific findings regarding the reliability and validity of these tools can be found in Table 2 of this open-access article.

For children in Iran, this review reported the following psychometrics for assessment and screening tools designed to identify children on the autism spectrum: <br /> <ul> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC)</strong> had the highest sensitivity (97%) and specificity (98%). Additionally, t</span><span style="color: #333333;">he ABC had an internal consistency (Cronbach&rsquo;s &alpha;) of 0.73. </span></li> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The Autism Spectrum Quotient Child Version (AQ-CHILD) Short Version </strong>had the highest reliability (Cronbach&rsquo;s &alpha; = 0.95). </span></li> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The AQ Adolescent Version (AQ-ADOL) </strong>had an internal consistency of 0.62. </span></li> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (CHAT) </strong>had an internal consistency of 0.88.</span></li> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The Modified CHAT (M-CHAT)</strong>&nbsp;had a sensitivity of 90.3%.</span></li> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The Quantitation CHAT (Q-CHAT)</strong>&nbsp;had an internal consistency of 0.88.</span></li> <li><span style="color: #333333;"><strong>The Early Screening of Autistic Traits (ESAT)&nbsp;</strong>had an internal consistency of 0.76.</span></li> </ul> Due to differences between screening tools (e.g., targeted age, length of assessment, investigated domains), the authors of this review recommend that tools "be selected and used according to the goals of the researchers and the therapists" (e.g., direct observation of child performance, assessment of family attitudes, comprehensive assessment; p. 1). <br /><br />Additional details about the reliability and validity of these tools can be found in Table 2 of this open-access article.