Reliability and validity of Brief Problem Monitor, an abbreviated form of the Child Behavior Checklist

• Published in: Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences Vol. 68; no. 10; pp. 759 - 767
• Main Authors: Piper, Brian J., Gray, Hilary M., Raber, Jacob, Birkett, Melissa A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01-10-2014
• Subjects: Adolescent; adolescents; Adult; anxiety; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - diagnosis; Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; Behavior; Checklist; Child; Child Behavior Disorders - diagnosis; children; Children & youth; Female; Humans; Male; Mental Disorders - diagnosis; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales - standards; Psychometrics - instrumentation; reliability; Reproducibility of Results; validity; anxiety; validity; adolescents; children; reliability
• ISSN: 1323-1316; 1440-1819
• DOI: 10.1111/pcn.12188

Aim
The parent form of the 113‐item Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) is widely utilized by child psychiatrists and psychologists. This report examines the reliability and validity of a recently developed abbreviated version of the CBCL, the Brief Problem Monitor (BPM).
Methods
Caregivers (n = 567) completed the CBCL online and the 19 BPM items were examined separately.
Results
Internal consistency of the BPM was high (Cronbach's alpha = 0.91) and satisfactory for the Internalizing (0.78), Externalizing (0.86), and Attention (0.87) scales. High correlations between the CBCL and BPM were identified for the total score (r = 0.95) as well as the Internalizing (0.86), Externalizing (0.93), and Attention (0.97) scales. The BPM and scales were sensitive and identified significantly higher behavioral and emotional problems among children whose caregiver reported a psychiatric diagnosis of attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, developmental disabilities, or autism spectrum disorders relative to a comparison group that had not been diagnosed with these disorders. BPM ratings also differed by the socioeconomic status and education of the caregiver. Mothers with higher annual incomes rated their children as having 38.8% fewer total problems (Cohen's d = 0.62) as well as 42.8% lower Internalizing (d = 0.53), 44.1% less Externalizing (d = 0.62), and 30.9% decreased Attention (d = 0.39). A similar pattern was evident for maternal education (d = 0.30–0.65).
Conclusion
Overall, these findings provide strong psychometric support for the BPM, although the differences based on the characteristics of the parent indicate that additional information from other sources (e.g., teachers) should be obtained to complement parental reports.