Rett Syndrome Behaviour Questionnaire in Children and Adults With Rett Syndrome: Psychometric Characterization and Revised Factor Structure.
Use the newly validated 6-factor pediatric and 7-factor adult RSBQ structure when assessing behavior in Rett syndrome.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team looked at the Rett Syndrome Behaviour Questionnaire (RSBQ). They wanted to know if the old factor list still fits kids and adults with Rett.
They ran a fresh factor analysis on caregiver forms. The work split the sample into pediatric and adult groups.
What they found
A six-factor model fit the pediatric forms best. A seven-factor model fit the adult forms best.
Reliability stayed strong in both new models. The study says it is fine to keep using the RSBQ, but switch to the age-tuned factor list when you score it.
How this fits with other research
Murphy et al. (2014) also trimmed factors on an autism trait scale. Like Vassos et al. (2023), they used confirmatory factor analysis and ended up with fewer, cleaner factors for clinical use.
Haynes et al. (2013) reworked the SDQ for kids with ID and likewise dropped two factors. The pattern is the same: original questionnaires often carry extra factors that do not hold up in disability samples.
Bhat et al. (2023) revised the DCD-Q motor scale from three to five factors. Again, more factors helped pinpoint specific problems, mirroring the RSBQ move from one set to age-tuned six and seven factors.
Why it matters
If you assess Rett syndrome, score the RSBQ with the new six-factor sheet for kids and seven-factor sheet for adults. You will get truer profiles and clearer targets for treatment. Update your Excel template this week so your next evaluation already uses the right factors.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder associated with multiple neurobehavioral abnormalities. The Rett Syndrome Behaviour Questionnaire (RSBQ) was developed for pediatric RTT observational studies. Because its application has expanded to adult and interventional studies, we evaluated the RSBQ's psychometric properties in six pediatric (n = 323) and five adult (n = 309) datasets. Total and General Mood subscale scores had good reliability. Clinical severity had no influence on RSBQ scores. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses yielded 6 pediatric and 7 adult clinically relevant and psychometrically strong factors including the original Breathing Problems and Fear/Anxiety subscales and the novel Emotional and Disruptive Behavior subscale composed of items from the original General Mood and Nighttime Behaviours subscales. The present findings support additional evaluations and improvements of an important RTT behavioral measure.
American journal on intellectual and developmental disabilities, 2023 · doi:10.1352/1944-7558-128.3.237