z-logo
open-access-imgOpen Access
Psychometric properties of a screening tool for autism in the community—The Indian Autism Screening Questionnaire (IASQ)
Author(s) -
Surajit Chakraborty,
Triptish Bhatia,
Vikas Kumar Sharma,
Nitin Antony,
Dhritishree Das,
Sushree Sahu,
Surya Prakash Sharma,
Vandana Shriharsh,
Jaspreet S. Brar,
Satish Iyengar,
Ravinder Singh,
Vishwajit L. Nimgaonkar,
Smita N. Deshpande
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0249970
Subject(s) - autism , inter rater reliability , autism spectrum disorder , medicine , receiver operating characteristic , childhood autism rating scale , clinical psychology , psychiatry , informed consent , rating scale , psychology , alternative medicine , developmental psychology , pathology
Currently available screening questionnaires for Autism spectrum disorders were tested in developed countries, but many require additional training and many are unsuitable for older individuals, thus reducing their utility in lower/ middle- income countries. We aimed to derive a simplified questionnaire that could be used to screen persons in India. Methods We have previously validated Indian Scale for Assessment of Autism (ISAA), that is now mandated for disability assessment by the Government of India. This detailed tool requires intensive training and it is time consuming. It was used to derive a new screening questionnaire: 1) items most frequently scored as positive by participants with autism in original ISAA validation study were modified for binary scoring following expert review. 2) In a new sample, clinically diagnosed individuals with/without autism were administered the screening tool and ISAA following written informed consent. Its psychometric properties were determined. Results A 10-item scale named Indian Autism Screening Questionnaire (IASQ) was prepared in Hindi and English. Thereafter 145 parents/caregivers of participants (autism, n = 90, other psychiatric disorders, n = 55) (ages 3–18), were administered IASQ and ISAA (parents/caregivers plus observation) by separate interviewers, blind to each other and to diagnosis. At a cutoff of 1, sensitivity was 99%, specificity 62%, Positive Predictive Value 81%, and Negative Predictive Value 95%. Test-retest reliability was r = 0.767 (CI = 0.62–0.86) and interrater reliability- Krippendorff”s-alpha was 0.872. The area under Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (ROC) was 95%. There was a significant difference on IASQ-scores between participants with and without a clinical diagnosis of Autism (t = 14.57, p<0.0001). Discussion The IASQ is a simple, easy to use screening tool with satisfactory reliability and validity, that can be administered to caregivers in 15 minutes and provides information about DSM 5 criteria for autism. It may be applicable outside India, following additional adaptation, for community-based studies.

The content you want is available to Zendy users.

Already have an account? Click here to sign in.
Having issues? You can contact us here