Translation, Cultural Adaption, and Examination of the Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of "First Year Inventory," an Autism Screening Tool.
The Persian FYI is a solid, culture-ready screen for spotting ASD risk in Iranian babies at their first birthday.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team translated the First Year Inventory into Persian. They asked Iranian parents of 12-month-old babies to fill it out.
They checked if the Persian form still caught autism red flags. They also ran stats to be sure the scores were reliable.
What they found
The Persian FYI held up well. It gave steady results when parents took it twice.
It correctly sorted most babies later diagnosed with ASD from those who were not. The study calls the tool ready for use in Iran.
How this fits with other research
Shahrokhi et al. (2025) show most Iranian children are flagged for autism between ages 3-7. The FYI now pushes that window down to 12 months.
Reichow (2012) pooled meta-analyses and says starting intervention before preschool boosts IQ and daily skills. An earlier screen gives families a head start.
Sajith et al. (2008) trimmed motor and language items from the Bayley scales to get a cleaner picture in Down syndrome. Asal et al. did a similar tweak: they kept the FYI items but made them fit Iranian culture. Both studies show you can bend a tool without breaking its value.
Why it matters
If you serve Farsi-speaking families, you now have a validated parent checklist for 12-month-olds. Use it during well-baby visits or intake. A red-flag score gives you data to start the conversation about further steps and keeps the door open for early ABA.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with challenges in social communication and restricted, repetitive behaviors. Early diagnosis is vital for effective interventions. In low- and middle-income countries like Iran, reliable screening tools for ASD are scarce. This study aims to translate, culturally adapt, and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the "First Year Inventory, version 2" (FYI) for use in Iran. The FYI was translated into Persian using the Watson and DuBay (2019) method. A panel of ten experts assessed its validity. Based on their feedback, necessary cultural and linguistic adjustments were made. A pre-test was conducted with parents of typically developing infants, and psychometric properties such as test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and criterion validity were evaluated. The study translated and culturally adapted the FYI for screening ASD in 12-month-old infants. Data from 110 participants showed good psychometric properties, with excellent discriminative ability in distinguishing ASD from typically developing infants and children with developmental delays. The adaptation of FYI addressed linguistic, cultural, and technical challenges, confirming its applicability in Iran. The tool showed strong validity and reliability in distinguishing ASD. However, cultural nuances in the social-communication domain highlighted the need for further refinement. Future research should focus on larger samples and integrate FYI with other diagnostic tools for improved screening accuracy.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2025 · doi:10.32598/ajnpp.4.3.305