CBCL in the assessment of psychopathology in Finnish children with intellectual disability

Abstract

Structured checklists have been used to supplement psychiatric assessment of children with normal intelligence, but for children with intellectual disability, only a few checklists exist. We evaluated the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) in the assessment of psychopathology in Finnish children with intellectual disability. The CBCL was completed by parents or other carers of 90 children aged 6–13 years. Of the 118 CBCL problem items, the lowest scores were for ‘Suicidal talks’ and ‘Alcohol, drugs’, and the highest score for ‘Acts too young’. Total Problem, Internalizing, and Externalizing scores were highest among children with moderate intellectual disability and lowest among those with profound intellectual disability. Externalizing scores were significantly higher among children with mild or moderate intellectual disability than among those with severe or profound intellectual disability. Compared with the original normative samples, Total Problem scores were higher in the present study. With a T-score cut-off point of 60, the rated frequency of psychiatric disorders was 43%. We conclude that, despite certain limitations, the CBCL can be used in the assessment of psychopathology among children with mild intellectual disability but is less reliable for those with moderate, severe, or profound intellectual disability.