A study on the usefulness and reliability of the "Scheme of Appraisal of Emotional Development" (SAED) for persons with ID using direct observation in a group-based assessment procedure.
Watch adults with ID for 30 minutes and get a reliable SAED score—no caregiver interview needed.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team wanted to know if they could score emotional development without asking caregivers. They watched the adults with intellectual disability during group activities in a hospital day program.
Three staff filled out the SAED after each 30-minute session. They compared their ratings to see if they agreed.
What they found
The observers agreed 85 percent of the time. The SAED showed excellent internal consistency (α = .92).
Direct observation worked just as well as the old caregiver interview method.
How this fits with other research
La Malfa et al. (2009) first showed the SAED was reliable when used with caregivers. Nijs et al. (2016) now proves you can skip the interview and watch instead.
Green et al. (1999) already showed behavioral observation works for happiness in profound ID. This study extends the same idea to emotional development.
Kremkow et al. (2022) stretched a similar scale to teens. Together the papers build a ladder: observe kids with SED-S, adults with SAED, all without surveys.
Why it matters
You can now score emotional growth during regular program activities. No extra caregiver forms. Watch, score, done. Use the SAED at intake, annual reviews, or whenever you need a quick emotional snapshot.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
INTRODUCTION: Whereas instruments for the assessment of intellectual and social abilities are widely available, instruments for the evaluation of emotional development of persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) are rare. The Scheme of Appraisal of Emotional Development (SAED), an internationally used tool developed by Dosen (2005a. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 49, 1, 2005b. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 49, 9), is one of the latter and is based on interviews with caregivers. The present study aims to investigate the internal consistency and interrater-reliability by changing the interview procedure into a direct observation and evaluation approach by a whole team instead of by one expert. METHOD: The level of emotional development of 175 patients admitted to a psychiatric inpatient unit specialized in the treatment of adults with ID was evaluated with the SAED by the treatment team after an observation period of up to two weeks. The inter- and intra-rater-reliability was assessed by direct observation of the behaviour of an additional 50 patients by two pairs of raters. RESULTS: The internal consistency of the SAED dimensions, once rated by team approach, is excellent, and the reliability measures show also good statistical results. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: The evaluation of the level of emotional development using the SAED by a group-led and/or direct observational procedure show to be a reliable and useful approach. The group-based procedure yields equal results compared with the usual interview guidelines and might lead to an additional training effect within the respective teams. The rater-reliability measures align with those reported in other studies.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2016 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2015.11.018