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Risk and Protective Factors Scale: reliability and validity in preadolescents
1Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC.
Objective:
To describe the reliability and validity of a novel scale, the Risk and Protective Factors Scale (RPFS), in preadolescents. The RPFS is designed to predict the development of disruptive behaviour disorders (DBDs).
Method:
A controlled study of 120 children aged 6-12 years in DBD and normal groups. Measures include the RPFS and the Revised Child Behaviour Profile (RCBP).
Results:
Cohen kappa for interrater reliability is 0.81, 92% agreement. Pearson correlation for test-retest reliability is 0.76, 94% agreement. Cronbach alpha for internal consistency is 0.89. Pearson correlation between the RPFS and RCBP is 0.82. The total scores and subscores of the RPFS discriminate significantly between DBD and control groups by student t-test.
Conclusion:
The RPFS has good internal consistency and interrater and test-retest reliability. It has concurrent validity to the RCBP and discriminant validity between DBD and normal groups. This scale may help identify children at risk for DBD, which would allow early intervention, but requires a longitudinal study to establish its predictive power.