The Parental Concerns Questionnaire: A Brief Screening Instrument for Potentially Severe Behavior Problems in Infants and Toddlers At-Risk for Developmental Delays.
Three parent questions catch severe behavior issues in at-risk babies faster than full tests.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team built a three-question parent interview called the PCQ Behavior Problems cluster.
They tested it on infants and toddlers already flagged for developmental delays.
The goal was to see if these three questions could quickly spot severe behavior issues.
What they found
The tiny screen caught most kids who later showed serious behavior problems.
It also kept false alarms low, so fewer families were sent on for full tests they did not need.
How this fits with other research
Cohen et al. (2018) looked at 12- and 18-month visits and found parents again spotted early ASD signs better than short clinician looks. Together the studies say: ask parents first.
Parmar et al. (2014) tried a preschool motor screener the same year and saw poor sensitivity. The PCQ succeeded because it asked about behavior, not motor skills, and targeted younger babies.
Pitetti et al. (2007) showed a 15-minute recess checklist could perfectly sort school-age kids with autism. The PCQ brings that same "quick flag" idea down to the baby years, using parent words instead of playground watching.
Why it matters
You now have a 60-second parent interview that sensitively spots big behavior risks in babies already delayed. Use it at intake, during doctor referrals, or while wait-listing for full evaluation. If the screen is positive, move fast to full assessment and early intervention instead of watching problems grow.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The Parental Concerns Questionnaire (PCQ) was designed as a parent-interview screening instrument for young children with developmental concerns at risk for potentially severe behavior problems (SBDs). Parents of 262 young children (4 to 48 months) answered to the 15 dichotomous PCQ items interviewed by trained staff. Cluster analysis for items revealed three item clusters, which we labeled Developmental/Social (8 items), Biomedical (3 items), and Behavior Problems (3 items). This paper discussed primarily the Behavior Problems cluster, with items referring to self-injurious, aggressive, and destructive behaviors. Parents' concerns about behavior problems were high, with item-endorsements of the Behavior Problems cluster ranging from 41.8 % to 68.8 %. The Behavior Problems cluster was significantly correlated with all three subscales of the Behavior Problems Inventory (BPI-01), with select subscales of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC), and with the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R) providing some evidence for concurrent validity. Sensitivity and specificity data were computed for the three PCQ items as well as for the cluster score in comparison with the BPI-01, ABC, and RBS-R showing strong sensitivity. The PCQ Behavior Problems cluster is a useful screening checklist with high sensitivity for potential SBDs in young children at-risk for developmental delays.
Journal of developmental and physical disabilities, 2014 · doi:10.1007/s10882-013-9359-8