Introducing a new adolescent psychopathology screen: the High School Personality Questionnaire pathology section

Area of Science:

• Psychological assessment
• Child and adolescent psychology
• Psychopathology

Background:

• The High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ) is a widely used measure of personality in adolescents.
• A psychopathology supplement was developed to enhance the HSPQ's utility in identifying psychological adjustment issues.
• Establishing criterion validity is crucial for validating new or modified psychological assessment tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide evidence for the criterion validity of a psychopathology supplement for the 1984 High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ).
• To assess the supplement's ability to correlate with existing measures of psychopathology and clinical judgment.

Main Methods:

• Correlational analysis was employed to examine the relationships between the HSPQ psychopathology supplement and other measures.
• Data were collected from 24 participants.
• The study utilized scores from Achenbach's Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and independent clinician ratings of psychological adjustment.

Main Results:

• Significant correlations were found between the HSPQ psychopathology supplement scores and scores on the Child Behavior Checklist.
• Correlations between the supplement and clinicians' ratings of psychological adjustment also provided supporting evidence for validity.
• These findings suggest the supplement effectively differentiates between varying levels of psychological adjustment.

Conclusions:

• The psychopathology supplement for the 1984 HSPQ demonstrates criterion validity.
• The supplement shows promise as a tool for assessing psychopathology in adolescents.
• Further research is warranted to explore the supplement's utility across diverse populations and clinical settings.