German Version of the Relationship Problems Questionnaire: Effective Screening for Attachment Disorder

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Clinical Psychiatry
• Developmental Disorders

Background:

• Attachment disorder (AD) is common in maltreated children but often underdiagnosed.
• Early identification is crucial to prevent long-term psychiatric issues.
• A valid and economical screening tool for AD is needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the German version of the Relationship Problems Questionnaire (RPQ).
• To assess the RPQ's sensitivity and specificity in identifying children with AD.

Main Methods:

• 135 children (mean age 7.17 years) from general and high-risk populations participated.
• Attachment disorder was diagnosed using the standardized K-DIPS clinical interview.
• The RPQ's performance was compared against the clinical diagnosis.

Main Results:

• The RPQ identified 74% of children with AD.
• An optimal cut-off score of 4.5 yielded moderate sensitivity (0.74) and specificity (0.68).

Conclusions:

• The German RPQ is a useful, economical tool for screening AD symptoms.
• It is suitable for both general and high-risk child populations.
• Recommend RPQ for screening, followed by multi-method assessment for positive cases.