Psychometric Properties of the Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale in Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Obsessive–Compulsive Symptoms

• Published in: Child psychiatry and human development Vol. 45; no. 2; pp. 201 - 211
• Main Authors: Wu, Monica S., McGuire, Joseph F., Arnold, Elysse B., Lewin, Adam B., Murphy, Tanya K., Storch, Eric A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01-04-2014; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Anxiety Disorders; Autism; Autism Spectrum Disorders; Autistic spectrum disorders; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child & adolescent psychiatry; Child and School Psychology; Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - complications; Child Development Disorders, Pervasive - psychology; Compulsive Behavior - complications; Compulsive Behavior - diagnosis; Compulsive Behavior - psychology; Female; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Neuroses; Obsessive Behavior - complications; Obsessive Behavior - diagnosis; Obsessive Behavior - psychology; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - complications; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - diagnosis; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - psychology; Obsessive-Compulsive neuroses; Original Article; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychiatry; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychometric properties; Psychometrics; Psychometrics. Diagnostic aid systems; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Quantitative psychology; Reproducibility of Results; Sensitivity and Specificity; Severity; Severity of Illness Index; Symptom Assessment; Symptoms; Symptoms (Individual Disorders); Techniques and methods; Young people; Obsessive–compulsive disorder; Children; Reliability; Autism spectrum disorder; Assessment; Human; Obsessive compulsive disorder; Evaluation scale; Anxiety disorder; Psychometrics; Developmental disorder; Test validation; Autism; Pervasive developmental disorder; Obsessive-compulsive disorder; Child
• ISSN: 0009-398X; 1573-3327
• DOI: 10.1007/s10578-013-0392-8

The psychometric properties of the Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS) were investigated in 46 treatment-seeking youth, 7–15 years of age, who were diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and exhibited obsessive–compulsive symptoms. The CY-BOCS Total score exhibited good internal consistency, with differing internal consistencies observed on the Obsession Severity scale (α = 0.86) and Compulsion Severity scale (α = 0.59). Good to excellent inter-rater reliability was observed for the CY-BOCS Total score and both Severity scales. Convergent and divergent validity of the CY-BOCS Total score and both Severity scales were satisfactory. Insight into obsessive–compulsive symptoms was moderately associated with the CY-BOCS Total score. The CY-BOCS demonstrated treatment sensitivity, demonstrating significant changes in obsessive–compulsive symptoms within a subsample of youth receiving cognitive-behavioral treatment. Overall, the CY-BOCS demonstrated adequate psychometric properties and utility in assessing obsessive–compulsive symptoms in youth with ASD and clinically significant obsessive–compulsive symptoms.