Routinised and compulsive-like behaviours in individuals with Down syndrome.
The Childhood Routines Inventory gives you three reliable factors in Down syndrome—use the Repetitive Behaviour score as a quick screen for co-occurring mental-health needs.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team gave the Childhood Routines Inventory to people with Down syndrome. They wanted to see if the same three-factor pattern found in other groups would show up here.
They also asked whether extra routines were linked to other mental-health labels in the same people.
What they found
Three clear factors popped out: Repetitive Behaviour, Just-Right feelings, and Rigidity. The structure looked solid.
People who also had a psychiatric diagnosis scored higher on the Repetitive Behaviour factor, but total routine scores were no different from those without a diagnosis.
How this fits with other research
Prasher et al. (1995) did the same kind of factor check on the Behavior Problem Inventory two decades earlier. Their three-factor win set the stage for using short caregiver scales in intellectual disability.
Kleinert et al. (2007) later validated the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised in autism. Both studies used factor analysis and found reliable sub-scales, showing the method works across tools and diagnoses.
Stewart et al. (2018) later repeated the idea in Spanish-speaking youth with autism. Together these papers form a chain: if one questionnaire holds up in Down syndrome, odds are the next one will too.
Why it matters
You now have a quick, free tool that sorts routines into three buckets. Watch the Repetitive Behaviour factor most closely; a high score is a flag for possible co-occurring anxiety or mood issues. Add the CRI to your intake packet and track just that one factor over time—it takes two minutes and tells you when to refer out.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Increased intensities of routinised and compulsive-like behaviours are seen in those with intellectual disabilities and have sometimes been shown to be associated with worries. We used the Childhood Routines Inventory (CRI, Evans et al., 1997) with two samples of children and adults with Down syndrome: (1) to determine whether routinised and compulsive-like behaviours were associated with mental health problems and (2) to determine the factor structure of the CRI. METHOD: Parents or carers completed the CRI for (1) 125 adults with Down syndrome (aged 18-43 years) who had been assessed for mental health problems; worries and fears were also rated by parents/carers and (2) 206 individuals with Down syndrome (aged 4.5-43 years, with verbal mental ages of 2 years and above). RESULTS: (1) People with a psychiatric diagnosis had significantly more worries and fears than those without such a diagnosis, but there was no significant difference in CRI scores. Logistic regression indicated that the fear rating was the only significant predictor of a diagnosis. (2) Exploratory and confirmatory analyses showed a three-factor model (Just right, Repetitive behaviour and Clothes sensitivity) to be the best solution. Those with psychiatric diagnoses had significantly higher ratings on the Repetitive behaviour factor. CONCLUSION: Increased levels of routinised and compulsive-like behaviours were shown by individuals with Down syndrome of all ages, were not associated with mental health problems, but were associated with worries and fears. Factor analysis found three factors, two of which (Just right and Repetitive behaviours), were similar to those identified in typically developing samples. This suggests that the behaviours have similar adaptive functions in individuals with developmental delays.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2015 · doi:10.1111/jir.12199