The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire as a screening instrument in a community sample of high school seniors in Sweden

Abstract. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is a popular screening instrument for the detection of social-emotional and behavioral problems in children in community and clinical settings. To sensibly compare SDQ scores across these settings, the SDQ should measure psychosocial difficulties and strengths in the same way across community and clinical populations, that is, the SDQ should be measurement invariant across both populations. We examined whether measurement invariance of the parent version of the SDQ holds using data from a community sample (N = 707) and a clinical sample (N = 931). The results of our analysis suggest that measurement invariance of the SDQ parent version across community and clinical populations is tenable, implying that one can compare the SDQ scores of children across these populations. This is a favorable result since it is common clinical practice to interpret the scores of a clinical individual relative to norm scores that are based on community samples. The findings of this study support the continued use of the parent version of the SDQ in community and clinical settings.

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The German Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759/a000034 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 26 (4) ◽

pp. 256-262 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

Ulrike Petermann ◽

Franz Petermann ◽

Ina Schreyer

Keyword(s):

Correlation Analysis ◽

Teacher Ratings ◽

Screening Instrument ◽

Preschool Age ◽

Strengths And Difficulties Questionnaire ◽

Preschool Age Children ◽

Discriminant Analyses ◽

Strengths And Difficulties ◽

Behavioral Attributes ◽

And Behavior

The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is a screening instrument that addresses positive and negative behavioral attributes of children and adolescents. Although this questionnaire has been used in Germany to gather information from parents and teachers of preschoolers, few studies exist that verify the validity of the German SDQ for this age. In the present study, teacher ratings were collected for 282 children aged 36 to 60 months (boys = 156; girls = 126). Likewise, teacher ratings were collected with another German checklist for behavior problems and behavior disorders at preschool age (Verhaltensbeurteilungsbogen für Vorschulkinder, VBV 3–6). Moreover, children’s developmental status was assessed. Evaluation included correlation analysis as well as canonical correlation analysis to assess the multivariate relationship between the set of SDQ variables and the set of VBV variables. Discriminant analyses were used to clarify which SDQ variables are useful to differentiate between children with or without developmental delay in a multivariate model. The results of correlation and discriminant analyses underline the validity of the SDQ for preschoolers. According to these results, the German teacher SDQ is recommended as a convenient and valid screening instrument to assess positive and negative behavior of preschool age children.

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Is Using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire in a Community Sample the Optimal Way to Assess Mental Health Functioning?

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0144039 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. e0144039 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Sharmila Vaz ◽

Reinie Cordier ◽

Mark Boyes ◽

Richard Parsons ◽

Annette Joosten ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Community Sample ◽

Strengths And Difficulties Questionnaire ◽

Mental Health Functioning ◽

Health Functioning ◽

Strengths And Difficulties

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Using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) to screen for child psychiatric disorders in a community sample

The British Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1192/bjp.177.6.534 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 177 (6) ◽

pp. 534-539 ◽

Cited By ~ 940

Author(s):

Robert Goodman ◽

Tamsin Ford ◽

Helen Simmons ◽

Rebecca Gatward ◽

Howart Meltzer

Keyword(s):

Psychiatric Disorders ◽

Separation Anxiety ◽

Community Sample ◽

Strengths And Difficulties Questionnaire ◽

Psychiatric Diagnoses ◽

Older Children ◽

Community Screening ◽

Child Psychiatric ◽

Specific Phobias ◽

Strengths And Difficulties

BackgroundChild psychiatric disorders are common and treatable, but often go undetected and therefore remain untreated.AimsTo assess the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) as a potential means for improving the detection of child psychiatric disorders in the community.MethodSDQ predictions and independent psychiatric diagnoses were compared in a community sample of 7984 5- to 15-year-olds from the 1999 British Child Mental Health Survey.ResultsMulti-informant (parents, teachers, older children) SDQs identified individuals with a psychiatric diagnosis with a specificity of 94.6% (95% CI 94.1–95.1%) and a sensitivity of 63.3% (59.7–66.9%). The questionnaires identified over 70% of individuals with conduct, hyperactivity, depressive and some anxiety disorders, but under 50% of individuals with specific phobias, separation anxiety and eating disorders. Sensitivity was substantially poorer with single-informant rather than multi-informant SDQs.ConclusionsCommunity screening programmes based on multi-informant SDQs could potentially increase the detection of child psychiatric disorders, thereby improving access to effective treatments.

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Normierung und Evaluation der deutschen Elternversion des Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ): Ergebnisse einer repräsentativen Felderhebung

Zeitschrift für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und Psychotherapie ◽

10.1024//1422-4917.30.2.105 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 30 (2) ◽

pp. 105-112 ◽

Cited By ~ 178

Author(s):

W. Woerner ◽

A. Becker ◽

C. Friedrich ◽

A. Rothenberger ◽

H. Klasen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Kinder Und Jugendliche ◽

Screening Instrument ◽

Strengths And Difficulties Questionnaire ◽

Strengths And Difficulties

Zusammenfassung: Fragestellung: Der Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) ist ein kurzer Fragebogen zu Verhaltensauffälligkeiten und -stärken bei Kindern und Jugendlichen, der in Eltern- und Lehrerversionen sowie als Selbstbericht vorliegt. Bei der Formulierung der 25 SDQ-Items wurde gezielt auf eine Ausgewogenheit von positiven und negativen Verhaltensaspekten geachtet. Zur deutschen Version existieren erste Validierungsbefunde, bislang aber noch keine Normierung. Methode: In einer bundesweiten repräsentativen Felderhebung wurde für 930 sechs- bis 16-jährige Kinder und Jugendliche die Elternversion des SDQ komplett ausgefüllt. Nach einer Überprüfung der faktoriellen Struktur der deutschen Fassung wurden anhand der Verteilungen der Skalenrohwerte Grenzwerte bestimmt, um individuelle Skalenwerte zu einer von drei Kategorien (unauffällig / Grenzbefund / auffällig) zuzuordnen. Schließlich wurden mögliche Geschlechts-, Alters- und Schichteffekte betrachtet. Ergebnisse: Die erhaltene faktorielle Struktur entsprach genau der ursprünglichen Skalenbildung. Statistisch bedeutsame, aber nur gering ausgeprägte Effekte von Alter, Geschlecht und sozialer Schichtzugehörigkeit führten lediglich beim Gesamtproblemwert zu einer differenzierten Bestimmung alters- und geschlechtsspezifischer Grenzwerte, nicht jedoch bei den SDQ-Einzelskalen. Schlussfolgerungen: Angesichts der exakten Replikation der 5 SDQ-Skalen erhöhen die hier erhobenen Normdaten den diagnostischen Wert des Instruments. Sie dienen ferner als Grundlage für weitere Validierungsstudien, um den klinischen Nutzen des deutschen SDQ als praktikables und ökonomisches Screening-Instrument, für die Eingangsdiagnostik sowie zur Dokumentation von Therapieverläufen zu evaluieren.

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Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire in a Community Sample of French-Speaking Adolescents

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759.24.1.1 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Mathieu d'Acremont ◽

Martial Van der Linden

Keyword(s):

Factor Analysis ◽

Confirmatory Factor Analysis ◽

Conduct Problems ◽

Community Sample ◽

Strengths And Difficulties Questionnaire ◽

Emotional Symptoms ◽

Internal Reliability ◽

Peer Problems ◽

Confirmatory Factor ◽

Strengths And Difficulties

Abstract. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) assesses adaptive and problematic behavior in children and adolescents ( Goodman, 1997 ). The aim of this study was to test the construct validity of a French translation of the scale. Teachers completed the SDQ for their pupils (279 girls and 278 boys, 13-18 years). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the SDQ supported the original distinction between Conduct problems, Hyperactivity/Inattention, Peer problems, Emotional symptoms, and Prosocial behavior. Multigroup CFA revealed invariance of factor measurement across gender. In addition, boys had higher factor scores for Conduct problems, Hyperactivity/Inattention, and Peer problems whereas girls were more Prosocial. The internal reliability of the subscales ranges from acceptable to very good. These results indicate that the French version of the SDQ has a reliable factor organization among adolescent boys and girls.

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The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire in a Community Sample of Young Children in Flanders

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759.22.3.189 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 22 (3) ◽

pp. 189-197 ◽

Cited By ~ 67

Author(s):

Karla Van Leeuwen ◽

Thierry Meerschaert ◽

Guy Bosmans ◽

Leen De Medts ◽

Caroline Braet

Keyword(s):

Factor Analysis ◽

Young Children ◽

Child Behavior Checklist ◽

Community Sample ◽

Age Groups ◽

Internalizing Behavior ◽

Strengths And Difficulties Questionnaire ◽

Dutch Version ◽

Confirmatory Factor ◽

Strengths And Difficulties

This study investigates some psychometric properties of the Dutch version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a brief measure for screening behavioral and emotional problems in children and adolescents. In two independent Flemish community samples of young children, parents (Sample 1: N = 532; Sample 2: N = 1086) and teachers (Sample 1: N = 512; Sample 2: N = 1049) of children aged 4-8 completed all items of the SDQ. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence for both a three- and a five-factor solution. Internal consistency and interrater reliability of the different SDQ scales were found to be satisfactory, except for the Conduct problems and the Peer problems scales. A good construct validity with the subscales of the well-established Child Behavior Checklist was found. A 2 (gender) × 2 (age groups: 4-5 and 6-7 years) ANOVA indicated that more hyperactivity/inattention problems and more internalizing behavior was reported for the oldest age group. More behavior problems were reported for boys than for girls, whereas girls were attributed more prosocial behavior.

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