Psychometric characteristics of the aberrant behavior checklist in a well-defined sample of youth with autism Spectrum disorder

Abstract

BackgroundBehavior and emotional difficulties often occur in children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), yet there are few instruments available to assess such problems in this population. The Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC), one option for this, is widely used and has substantial psychometric support. Despite this, only two studies to date have examined its structural validity in samples of individuals diagnosed exclusively with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This study sought to further examine the ABC’s validity for use with children and adolescents with ASD. MethodData from 470 individuals aged 2–14 years were submitted to confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Correlations with other measures were examined. MANOVA was conducted to examine effects of subject characteristics on subscale scores of the ABC and assist in developing norms. ResultsResults supported the original factor structure of the ABC. Convergent and divergent validity analyses indicated correspondence with analogous measures and lack of relationship for dissimilar constructs. Results of normative analyses were very comparable to the only previously published norms for youth with ASD. ConclusionsOverall, results provide further psychometric support for use of the ABC in individuals with ASD and better understanding the ABC’s clinical usefulness, particularly given the similarity between current and previous normative data. In a broader context, these results lend further support to the ABC as an instrument with wide applications.