The validation of a scale to measure cognitive development in Chinese preschool children.
A 15-minute cognitive screen gives BCBAs a quick, trusted way to flag developmental delays in Chinese preschoolers.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team built a short test for Chinese preschoolers. They called it the PDAS cognitive sub-test.
It has 30 items and takes 15 minutes. Teachers or clinicians can give it one-on-one.
They tested the kids in Hong Kong. Some had delays, most did not.
What they found
The test scored high on reliability (KR-20 = .93). That means scores stay steady if you re-test.
It sorted kids by age group and by delay status with 80 % accuracy. A score under the cut-off flagged risk.
Girls and boys scored the same, so no gender bias showed up.
How this fits with other research
Rihtman et al. (2011) did the same kind of work for motor skills. They made the Little DCDQ for 3- to young learners. Both studies prove quick screens can work at the same age.
Sobhy et al. (2022) built an Arabic sensory questionnaire. Like Cynthia et al., they showed a new tool can cross cultures and still hold up.
Wu et al. (2012) looked at Taiwanese preschoolers on the CBCL. They warned that US norms over-label local kids. Cynthia’s team avoided this trap by making fresh Hong Kong norms for their test.
Why it matters
If you serve Chinese-speaking families, you now have a 15-minute screen that is free and normed on kids like theirs. Use it to spot delays early and refer out fast. The strong reliability means you can trust small score changes when you re-test after intervention.
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Add the PDAS cognitive sub-test to your intake packet for any Mandarin- or Cantonese-speaking child under 6.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
The present study aimed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the cognitive sub-test of the Preschool Developmental Assessment Scale (PDAS) for Hong Kong Chinese children. Participants included 378 children (189 boys and 189 girls) aged 3-6 years old, with 324 children with typical development and 54 children with developmental disabilities. They were administered the cognitive sub-test of the PDAS and the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence - Revised (WPPSI-R). The PDAS cognitive sub-test total scores correlated positively with the WPPSI-R scores. It could differentiate children from different age groups, with younger children attaining significantly lower scores than older children. The sub-test could also differentiate children with typical development from those with developmental disabilities, with the latter attaining significantly lower scores. The sensitivity and specificity were around 80%. Internal consistency (KR-20) was .93 and test-retest reliability was .81. The cognitive sub-test of the PDAS was found to be a promising screening tool for the identification of preschool children with developmental disabilities.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2013 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2013.04.003