Assessment & Research

Validating the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised for Children in China Aged 3 to 8 with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

He et al. (2019) · Journal of autism and developmental disorders 2019
★ The Verdict

Use the 5-factor RBS-R when assessing repetitive behaviors in Chinese children with autism.

✓ Read this if BCBAs working with Chinese-speaking children with autism in clinic or school settings.
✗ Skip if BCBAs who only work with English-speaking families or adults with autism.

01Research in Context

01

What this study did

Researchers tested the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R) with 312 Chinese children who had autism.

Parents filled out the 43-item questionnaire. The team ran confirmatory factor analysis to see if the scale's five-factor structure held up in this culture.

They checked reliability and validity to ensure the tool truly measured repetitive behaviors in Chinese kids.

02

What they found

The five-factor structure fit perfectly. The factors are: stereotyped, self-injurious, compulsive, ritualistic, and restricted behaviors.

All reliability scores were strong. The scale showed good validity for measuring repetitive behaviors in Chinese children with autism.

03

How this fits with other research

Scahill et al. (2015) named the RBS-R as one of only five measures ready for clinical trials. This new study extends their work by proving it works in Chinese culture.

Lin et al. (2015) validated the Chinese CSBS DP for infants. Together, these studies show Western autism scales can work well when properly translated for Chinese families.

Tassé et al. (2013) validated the Japanese ADI-R but found problems with kids under 5. This study fills the gap by confirming the RBS-R works great for the 3-8 age range.

04

Why it matters

You can now confidently use the 5-factor RBS-R when working with Chinese-speaking families. The scale captures the full range of repetitive behaviors you need to track. This gives you a culturally valid baseline for treatment planning and progress monitoring.

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02At a glance

Intervention
not applicable
Design
other
Sample size
163
Population
autism spectrum disorder
Finding
positive

03Original abstract

Research on the repetitive behavior of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has recently gained scholarly attention. Restricted and repetitive behavior (RRB) is a core ASD symptom of various patterns and high prevalence. The Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R) is a standard questionnaire used to assess RRB in individuals with ASD. This study collected data from 163 Chinese children aged 3-8 with ASD to analyze the validity and reliability of the RBS-R. Results showed that the original tested items were adaptable to the Chinese cultural environment when treating such disorders. A confirmatory factor analysis was applied to the structuring models, indicating that a 5-factor model was more suitable for evaluating RRB in this context.

Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2019 · doi:10.1007/s10803-019-04210-x