Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the measurement properties of the Social Responsiveness Scale in an accelerated longitudinal sample of 4-year-old preschool children with the complementary approaches of categorical confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis. Measurement models based on the literature and other hypothesized measurement models which were tested using categorical confirmatory factor analysis did not fit well and were not unidimensional. Rasch analyses showed that a 30-item subset met criteria of unidimensionality and invariance across item, person, and over time; and this subset exhibited convergent validity with other child outcomes. This subset was shown to have enhanced psychometric properties and could be used in measuring social responsiveness among preschool age children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Autism Speaks, the Government of British Columbia, Alberta Innovates—Health Solutions, and the Sinneave Family Foundation. The authors thank all the families who participated in the Pathways in ASD study. The authors also acknowledge the members of the Pathways in ASD Study Team. These members had equal contribution to the study and are listed here alphabetically: Liliana Abruzzese, Megan Alexander, Susan Bauld, Ainsley Boudreau, Colin Andrew Campbell, Mike Chalupka, Lorna Colli, Melanie Couture, Bev DaSilva, Vikram Dua, Miriam Elfert, Lara El-Khatib, Lindsay Fleming, Kristin Fossum, Nancy Garon, Shareen Holly, Stephanie Jull, Karen Kalynchuk, Kathryne MacLeod, Preetinder Narang, Julianne Noseworthy, Irene O’Connor, Kaori Ohashi, Jennifer Endre Olson, Sarah Peacock, Teri Phillips, Sara Quirke, Katie Rinald, Jennifer Saracino, Cathryn Schroeder, Cody Shepherd, Rebecca Simon, Mandy Steiman, Richard Stock, Benjamin Taylor, Lee Tidmarsh, Larry Tuff, Kathryn Vaillancourt, Stephen Wellington, Isabelle Yun, and Li Hong Zhong.
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Duku, E., Vaillancourt, T., Szatmari, P. et al. Investigating the Measurement Properties of the Social Responsiveness Scale in Preschool Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. J Autism Dev Disord 43, 860–868 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1627-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-012-1627-4