The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Dysregulation Profile Teacher-Report: Psychometric Properties and Associations with Aspects of School Experience.

Abstract

Emotional, cognitive, and behavioral dysregulation is a risk factor for severe outcomes, calling for reliable measures to assess it, including the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Dysregulation Profile (SDQ-DP) defined by 5 or 15 items. This study explored for the first time the factor structure, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability of the SDQ-DPs teacher-report in a sample of Italian children (N = 1000; age 7-12 years). The gender invariance of the SDQ-DPs, construct validity, and associations with school variables were also evaluated. A first-order model for the SDQ-DP 5-item and a bifactor model for the SDQ-DP 15-item best fitted the data. Full measurement invariance across gender was confirmed only for the 15-item scale. Internal and test-retest reliabilities were weaker for the 5-item scale. Both SDQ-DPs were similarly associated with a measure of emotion regulation skills and some school variables. This study provides indications for a more conscious use of the two scales.