Cross-Cultural Applicability and Psychometric Properties of an Infant Social-Emotional Screening Instrument

In this study, the psychometric properties of the 6-month age interval of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional, Second Edition (ASQ:SE-2) in its English and traditional Chinese versions were examined by using item response theory. A total of 2612 and 915 caregivers from the United States and Taiwan, respectively, were asked to complete the ASQ:SE-2 to evaluate the social-emotional development of their infants, aged 3 months and 0 days to 8 months and 30 days. Psychometric analysis revealed promising item fit, with item difficulty consistent with the instrument's intended purpose. Nevertheless, low reliability was observed, with scores of 0.64 for the US sample and 0.66 for the Taiwanese sample. Differential item functioning (DIF) analysis identified significant differences in item function between the two cultural samples, with 40.9% (9 of 22) of the items having moderate to large DIF values. These items belonged to the self-regulation, adaptive functioning, social communication, and interaction domains of the ASQ:SE-2. These differences likely stemmed from differences in culture. Overall, these findings contribute to a deeper understanding of how this parent-reported instrument functions across cultural groups, and they underscore the importance of culturally sensitive adaptations in international contexts.