Multi-informant assessment of siblings of youth with autism spectrum disorder: Parent-child discrepancies in at-risk classification.
Always gather parent AND sibling self-reports when screening TD brothers and sisters of kids with ASD—single forms miss half the at-risk cases.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Bao et al. (2017) asked parents and their typically developing kids to fill out the same behavior checklist. The kids all had a brother or sister with autism. The team wanted to see how often the two reports agreed on who might need extra help.
They used the SDQ, a short survey that flags emotional and behavior problems. Each parent and each sibling gave their own view.
What they found
Only a handful of siblings were rated as at-risk. When parent and child answers were lined up, they matched poorly. A single report missed about half the kids who the other report flagged.
In short, mom or dad alone cannot tell you the full story. The sibling’s own voice is needed.
How this fits with other research
Lerner et al. (2012) saw the same mismatch, but in youth who have ASD themselves. Parents scored social skills far lower than the youth did. Bao et al. (2017) now shows the gap also exists when the child is the unaffected brother or sister.
Whitehouse et al. (2014) used only parent reports and found more problems in these siblings. Bao et al. (2017) adds that if you ask the sibling, the count of at-risk cases drops. The two studies do not clash; they simply show that more data changes the picture.
Hurtig et al. (2009) warned that parents can under-report anxiety and depression in high-functioning teens with ASD. Bao et al. (2017) echo the alert: without the child’s own answers, you may miss internalizing signs in the sibling group too.
Why it matters
If you screen siblings for support services, collect both a parent SDQ and a sibling self-report. One report alone gives a shaky picture. Using both lets you catch kids who need help but stay under the parent radar, and it saves time by cutting false positives. Build the dual-form routine into your intake packet today.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: The behavioral and emotional functioning of typically-developing (TD) siblings of youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been frequently assessed in the literature; however, these assessments typically include only one informant, rarely considering differences between parent and self-reports of sibling adjustment. AIMS: This study examined parent-youth reported informant discrepancies in behavioral and emotional functioning, including whether parent and youth reports yielded the same conclusions regarding TD sibling risk status. METHODS, PROCEDURES, AND RESULTS: Among 113 parents and TD siblings of youth with ASD, TD siblings self-reported more overall, conduct, hyperactivity, and peer problems (compared to parent reports). Although few siblings were considered at-risk, those who were identified were not usually identified as at-risk on both informants' reports. Moreover, ASD symptoms, broader autism phenotype symptoms, parent mental health concerns, and social support from parents were all related to differences in at-risk classification between parent- and sibling self-report. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: This paper highlights the necessity of multi-informant reporting when considering TD sibling psychological functioning. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: This study helps to address gaps in the literature on assessment of emotional and behavioral functioning of TD siblings of youth with ASD. The results highlight the importance of utilizing both parent- and self-report when identifying TD siblings at-risk for maladjustment. Although few siblings were considered at-risk, those who were identified were not usually identified as such on both informants' reports, and a variety of sibling- and parent-factors were associated with differences in at-risk classification. Thus, inclusion and examination of both parent- and self-report of TD sibling psychological functioning is vital for accurately identifying numbers of TD siblings at-risk of maladjustment.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2017 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2017.07.012