Title | Development of the Parent-Rated Anxiety Scale for Youth With Autism Spectrum Disorder. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2019 |
Authors | Scahill, L, Lecavalier, L, Schultz, RT, Evans, ANichole, Maddox, B, Pritchett, J, Herrington, J, Gillespie, S, Miller, J, R Amoss, T, Aman, MG, Bearss, K, Gadow, K, Edwards, MC |
Journal | J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry |
Volume | 58 |
Issue | 9 |
Pagination | 887-896.e2 |
Date Published | 2019 Sep |
ISSN | 1527-5418 |
Abstract | OBJECTIVE: Anxiety is common in youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There is no accepted outcome measure for anxiety in this population. METHOD: Following a series of focus groups with parents of youth with ASD, we generated 72 items (scored 0-3). Parents of 990 youth with ASD (aged 5-17 years; 80.8% male) completed an online survey. Factor analysis and item response theory analyses reduced the content to a single factor with 25 items. Youth with at least mild anxiety (n = 116; aged 5-17 years; 79.3% male) participated in a comprehensive clinical assessment to evaluate the validity and reliability of the 25-item Parent-Rated Anxiety Scale for ASD (PRAS-ASD). RESULTS: In the online sample, the mean PRAS-ASD score was 29.04 ± 14.9 (range, 0-75). The coefficient α was 0.93. The item response theory results indicated excellent reliability across a wide range of scores with low standard errors. In the clinical sample (n = 116), the PRAS-ASD mean was 31.0 ± 15.6 (range, 1-65). Pearson correlations with parent ratings of ASD symptom severity, repetitive behavior, and disruptive behavior ranged 0.33 to 0.66, supporting divergent validity of the PRAS-ASD. Pearson correlation with a parent-rated measure of anxiety used in the general pediatric population of 0.83 supported convergent validity. A total of 40 participants (32 boys, 8 girls; mean age, 11.9 ± 3.4 years) returned at time 2 (mean, 12.2 days) and time 3 (mean, 24.2 days). Intraclass correlation showed test-retest reliabilities of 0.88 and 0.86 at time 2 and time 3, respectively. CONCLUSION: The 25-item PRAS-ASD is a reliable and valid scale for measuring anxiety in youth with ASD. |
DOI | 10.1016/j.jaac.2018.10.016 |
Alternate Journal | J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry |
PubMed ID | 30797036 |