Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

The Social Aptitudes Scale: an initial validation

  • ORIGINAL PAPER
  • Published:
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

Poor social skills are associated with a range of child and adolescent psychiatric disorders, with deficits being particularly marked in autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs). Here, we validate a brief measure of social aptitudes where low scores are designed to index a substantially raised risk of ASDs.

Method

Parents of a national community sample of 7,977 British 5–16 year olds completed the Social Aptitudes Scale (SAS) as well as a general questionnaire measure of psychopathology, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Psychiatric diagnoses were assigned by clinical raters on the basis of detailed multi-informant information.

Results

All ten items of the SAS loaded onto a single latent factor, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.88. Correlations between the SAS and the SDQ were only modest, suggesting that the SAS measures different attributes to the SDQ. The SAS was significantly better than the SDQ at identifying ASDs.

Conclusion

Children and adolescents with low SAS scores are at increased risk of mental health problems, particularly ASDs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Achenbach TM (1991) Manual for the child behavior checklist/4 18 and 1991 Profile. University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry, Burlington

    Google Scholar 

  2. American Psychiatric Association (1994) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edn. (DSM-IV). American Psychiatric Association, Washington DC

    Google Scholar 

  3. Baird G, Charman T, Baron-Cohen S (2000) A screening instrument for autism at 18 months of age: a 6-year follow up study. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 39:694–702

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Baird G, Simonoff E, Pickles A, Chandler S, Loucas T, Meldrum D, Charman T (2006) Prevalence of disorders of the autism spectrum in a population cohort of children in South Thames: the special needs and autism project (SNAP). Lancet 15:210–215

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Berument SK, Rutter M, Lord C, Pickles A, Bailey A (1999) Autism screening questionnaire: diagnostic validity. Br J Psychiatry 175:444–451

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Charman T, Baird G, Simonoff E, Loucas T, Chandler S, Meldrum D, Pickles A (2007) Efficacy of three screening instruments in the identification of autistic-spectrum disorders. Br J Psychiatry 191:554–559

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Constantino JN, Gruber CP (2005) Social responsiveness scale (SRS). Western Psychological Services, Los Angeles

    Google Scholar 

  8. Fombonne E (2003) The prevalence of autism. JAMA 289:87–89

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Goodman R, Ford T, Richards H, Gatward R, Meltzer H (2000) The Development and Well-Being Assessment: description and initial validation of an integrated assessment of child and adolescent psychopathology. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 41:645–655

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Goodman R (2001) Psychometric properties of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 40:1337–1345

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Goodyer I, Wright C, Altman P (1990) The friendships and recent life events of anxious and depressed school-age children. Br J Psychiatry 156:689–698

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Green H, McGinnity A, Meltzer H, Ford T, Goodman R (2005) Mental health of children and young people in Great Britain, 2004. Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire

    Google Scholar 

  13. Hanley JA, McNeil BJ (1983) A method of comparing the areas under receiver operating characteristic curves derived from the same cases. Radiology 148:839–843

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Meltzer H, Gatward R, Goodman R, Ford T (2000) Mental health of children and adolescents in Great Britain. The Stationery Office, London

    Google Scholar 

  15. Rutter M (2005) Incidence of autism spectrum disorders: changes over time and their meaning. Acta Paediatr 94:2–15

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Skuse D, Mandy WPL, Miller L, Goodman R, Lawrence K, Emond A, Golding J (2008). Social communication competence and functional adaptation in a general population of children. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry (in press)

  17. WHO (1993) International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems: diagnostic criteria for research. World Health Organization, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Robert Goodman.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Liddle, E.B., Batty, M.J. & Goodman, R. The Social Aptitudes Scale: an initial validation. Soc Psychiat Epidemiol 44, 508–513 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-008-0456-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-008-0456-4

Keywords

Navigation