The Effectiveness of Parental Screening of At-Risk Infants

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Abstract
This study examined the validity, reliability, and cost of a parent-completed screening system called the Infant Monitoring Questionnaires. This system relies on parents to complete developmental questionnaires on their at-risk infants at specific time intervals. The present work replicated and extended a previous study of the questionnaires. The primary analyses included determining (a) the agreement between the infant's classification based on the parent-completed questionnaire and a criterion measure (e.g., Bayley Scales of Infant Development, Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test, Revised Gesell Developmental Schedules); (b) interobserver and test-retest reliability of the questionnaires; and (c) the cost of the questionnaire system. The results indicated that percentage agreement between classifications of infants made using the standardized tests and the questionnaires was high, ranging from 86% to 91%. Underscreening rates were low, ranging from zero to 6%; overscreening rates were also low, ranging from 3% to 11%. Interobserver and test-retest agreement were very high. At a cost of about $2.50 per questionnaire, the screening system provides an economical and flexible means of screening at-risk infants while at the same time involving parents in the assessment process.