Summarizes state-of-the-art approaches for assessing visual stimulus same/different judgments in individuals with severe intellectual disabilities. Methodological investigations indicate that one can obtain reliable same/different judgments with a variety of stimuli in virtually anyone for whom a basal score on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test…

This study describes the development of the Active Treatment Client Rights checklist (ATCR), which was designed to facilitate the assessment, monitoring, and implementation of readily observable client active treatment services for adults with developmental disabilities. The ATCR was found to be highly reliable, valid, and useful in enhancing…

This study evaluated the reliability of the Child Behavior Checklist with 42 children and youth with mild mental retardation. Use of kappa coefficients and intra-class correlations at item and syndrome levels indicated that the Child Behavior Checklist may not always represent a reliable checklist for the assessment of psychopathology in this…

The psychometric properties of the Motivation Assessment Scale were examined using 90 ratings of different problem behaviors among 86 individuals with mental retardation. Although reliability and internal consistency were generally poor, the results depended upon topographies of problem behavior and methods of calculation. The construct validity…

Data from the experimental functional analysis of challenging behaviors of 27 individuals with mental retardation were analyzed to assess agreement among three forms of interpretation. Results found that the methods of interpreting function from experimental assessment can give different results and that test-retest reliability of the experimental…

A study of 233 individuals with severe mental retardation examined the validity of the Diagnostic Assessment for the Severely Handicapped-II (DASH-II) through correlation with the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC). DASH-II as a whole was found to have a high degree of convergent validity with the ABC total score. (CR)

A study tested the validity of the Diagnostic Assessment for the Severely Handicapped-II (DASH-II) for determining the presence of mania (bipolar disorder) in 22 individuals with severe mental retardation. Results found the mania subscale to be internally consistent and able to be used to classify manic and control subjects accurately. (Author/CR)

A study involving 200 adults with mental retardation investigated the interrater reliability and internal consistency of the Matson Evaluation of Drug Side Effects (MEDS), a scale designed to evaluate commonly identified side effects with a psychometrically sound checklist. The MEDS had excellent consistency across raters and good internal…

A study tested the psychometric properties of the Stereotyped Behavior Scale, an empirically developed behavior rating scale for adolescents and adults with mental retardation. Forty-five adults with mental retardation and various rates of stereotypies participated. Results found the scale had high rates of reliability, validity, and interrater…

This study assessed the psychometric properties of the Environmental Rating Scale, a measure specifically designed to assess residential treatment programs for individuals with autism. The measure's reliability was demonstrated by assessments of the internal consistency, stability, and interrater reliability. Preliminary analysis of validity…

Parent and teacher ratings on the Aberrant Behavior Checklist with an outpatient sample of 110 children, adolescents, and young adults with mental retardation found that the 5-factor structure of both parent and teacher data corresponded very well with the 5 factors originally obtained from staff ratings of mentally retarded inpatients. (Author/DB)

This article investigates cognitive decline and depressive symptomatology among older adults with mental retardation. A pilot study of assessment instruments is reported. Findings reveal that decreasing cognitive ability is associated with higher rates of observed depression and reported behavioral problems. Cognitive decline was associated with…