Assessing the readability of the self-reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire
Praveetha Patalay,
Daniel Hayes,
Miranda Wolpert
Affiliations
Praveetha Patalay
University of Liverpool, UK, Evidence Based Practice Unit, UCL, London, UK, and Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, UK
Daniel Hayes
Evidence Based Practice Unit, UCL, London, UK and Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, UK
Miranda Wolpert
Evidence Based Practice Unit, UCL, London, UK, Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, UK, and Child Outcomes Research Consortium, London, UK
The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is one of the most widely used measures in child and adolescent mental health in clinical practice, community-based screening and research. Assessing the readability of such questionnaires is important as young people may not comprehend items above their reading ability when self-reporting. Analyses of readability in the present study indicate that the self-report SDQ might not be suitable for young people with a reading age below 13–14 years and highlight differences in readability between subscales. The findings suggest a need for caution in using the SDQ as a self-report measure for children below the age of 13, and highlight considerations of readability in measure development, selection and interpretation.
