Convergent and discriminant validity and reliability of the pediatric anxiety rating scale in youth with autism spectrum disorders.

Storch et al. (2012) tested the Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale (PARS) in kids with autism. The PARS is a short clinician interview that scores how severe a child's anxiety looks each week.

They checked if the scores stayed steady when different clinicians gave the scale. They also asked if the scores matched other anxiety measures and if they stayed separate from ADHD ratings.

The scale showed good reliability. Two clinicians usually gave the same child a similar score.

PARS scores lined up with other anxiety tools, giving evidence of convergent validity. However, scores also rose a bit with parent-rated hyperactivity, showing some overlap with externalizing problems.

Lecavalier et al. (2014) later reviewed all anxiety measures for autism trials. They kept the PARS on a very short list of "trial-ready" tools, confirming its value while warning that more valid measures are still needed.

Ozsivadjian et al. (2014) extended this work to self-report forms. They showed that kids with ASD can reliably fill out their own anxiety questionnaires, so you can add youth reports alongside the clinician PARS.

Noordenbos et al. (2012) focused on high-functioning teens and found teens under-report anxiety compared with parents and clinicians. This supports keeping a clinician scale like the PARS in the mix even when self-reports are used.

You now have a quick, clinician-friendly scale that is proven reliable for youth with ASD. Use the PARS when you need a weekly severity anchor for anxiety goals or medication monitoring. Just remember to pair it with parent or youth reports to catch kids who may hide their worries, and watch for scores that might be nudged up by hyperactivity rather than pure anxiety.