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INTERNALIZING/EXTERNALIZING BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS
NATIONAL LONGITUDINAL SURVEY OF YOUTH, 1997
Measure: Behavior and Emotional Problems Scale
Background
The measure of behavioral and emotional problems of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 (NLSY97 ) uses a set of six items developed as an indicator of children’s mental health for the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Four were asked of or about girls and four asked of or about boys, with two items overlapping. The items have also been used in the National Survey of America’s Families (NSAF), though in the NSAF, all items were asked of both genders (Ehrle & Moore, 1999). The items for the behavioral and emotional problems (NHIS and NSAF) indicator were selected from the Child Behavior Checklist, a standardized questionnaire used to obtain parent’s ratings of their children’s problems and competencies (Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1987).
The Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, is the primary sponsor of the NLSY97. Additional funding was received from the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Education, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Population Assessed
The NLSY97 baseline cohort has been weighted to be a nationally representative sample of youth between the ages of 12 and 16. Parents responded to items for youth within the entire age range of the cohort. Approximately, 89 percent of parents of participating youth were available to be interviewed. The sample was 51.2 percent male and 48.8 percent female. Blacks and Hispanics were oversampled for ethnic/racial variation, and many of the youth resided within the same household (e.g., were siblings).
Periodicity
The NLSY97 data collection is ongoing and fielded annually. The youth questionnaire is the primary questionnaire of the study and is continually fielded. The parent questionnaire was fielded only in the first round of data collection.
Subscales/Components
This information is not readily available.
Procedures for Administration
The items within the Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale—Youth Report are part of the self-administered portion of the youth questionnaire. This portion used an audio computer-assisted self-interview. The e youth questionnaire takes approximately 1 hour to administer; however, only four brief questions are in the Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale.
The items within the Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale—Parent Report are part of the Child Family portion of the parent questionnaire. Reporters were youth respondents between the ages of 12 and 14 and their parents. The mode of administration for this portion of the questionnaire was computer-assisted personal interview. The setting is one on one, and the measure takes less than 1 minute to administer.
Psychometrics/Data Quality
The responses to the four scale items were summed. Higher scores indicate more frequent and/or numerous behavior and/or emotional problems.
The Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale was created for each of the following four combinations of gender and respondent.
- Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Girls—Youth Report
- Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Boys—Youth Report
- Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Girls—Parent Report
- Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Boys—Parent Report
Each combination will be examined individually.
| Measure | Cronbach's Alpha |
|---|---|
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Girls—Youth Report | 0.53 |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Boys—Youth Report | 0.51 |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Girls—Parent Report | 0.57 |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Boys—Parent Report | 0.65 |
Validity
Construct Validity—Youth Report
T-tests compared mean scores, adjusted for youth’s age and gender, on parent report of Behavioral and Emotional Problems for the top and bottom thirds of youth report of Behavioral and Emotional Problems.
Youth who reported more behavior problems also had parents who reported more behavior problems for their youth.
Means, standard errors, and t-values are reported in the following table.
| Fewer Behavior Problems | More Behavior Problems | T-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Girls (Parent Report) (range: 0-8) | 0.64 |
1.90 (0.06) |
12.78*** |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Boys (Parent Report) (range: 0-8) | 1.06 (0.09) |
2.38 (0.06) |
11.59*** |
Construct Validity-Parent Report
T-tests compared mean scores, adjusted for youth's age and gender, on youth report of Behavioral and Emotional Problems for the top and bottom thirds of parent report of Behavioral and Emotional Problems.
Parents who reported "more behavior problems" had youth who reported more behavior problems.
Means, standard errors, and t-values are reported in the following table.
| Fewer Behavior Problems | More Behavior Problems | T-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Girls (Youth Report) (range: 0-8) | 1.44 (0.06) |
3.09 (0.09) |
15.51*** |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Boys (Youth Report) (range: 0-8) | 1.56 (0.06) |
2.83 (0.07) |
13.40*** |
Predictive Validity—Youth Report
T-tests compared means, adjusted for youth’s age and gender, on the family process and adolescent outcome variables listed in the table below for the top and bottom thirds of youth report of Behavioral and Emotional Problems.
Youth who reported more behavior problems also reported higher instances of substance use and delinquency.
Means, standard errors, and t-values are reported in the following table.
| Fewer Behavior Problems | More Behavior Problems | T-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Youth Report of Substance Use (Girls) (range: 0-3) | 0.27 (0.05) |
1.10 (0.03) |
15.28*** |
| Youth Report of Delinquency (Girls) (range: 0-3) |
0.24 (0.06) |
1.38 (0.04) |
15.20*** |
| Youth Report of Substance Use (Boys) (range: 0-3) | 0.40 (0.04) |
1.05 (0.03) |
12.17*** |
| Youth Report of Delinquency (Boys) (range: 0-3) | 0.59 (0.08) |
2.12 (0.05) |
15.74*** |
Other evidence suggesting validity includes t-tests comparing means, adjusted for youth’s age and gender, using the youth report of Behavioral and Emotional Problems for two poverty categories, less than 50 percent of the poverty level and greater than 200 percent of the poverty level.
Girls living in families with incomes greater than 200 percent of the poverty line reported fewer behavior problems than girls living in families with incomes less than 50 percent of the poverty line. Parents of youth living in families with incomes greater than 200 percent of the poverty line reported fewer behavior problems for youth than parents of families with incomes less than 50 percent of the poverty line. There is not strong evidence that youth report of behavior problems for boys differed by poverty level.
| <50 percent Poverty Level | >200 percent of Poverty Level | T-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Girls (Youth report) (range: 0-8) | 2.31 (0.07) |
1.95 (0.06) |
-3.79*** |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Boys (Youth report) (range: 0-8) | 2.21 (0.07) |
2.06 (0.06) |
-1.69(+) |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Girls (Parent report) (range: 0-8) | 1.55 (0.08) |
1.07 (0.07) |
-4.69*** |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Boys (Parent report) (range: 0-8) | 2.00 (0.09) |
1.61 (0.07) |
-3.42*** |
Missing Data and Variability of Data
If a respondent answered less than three questions, then a score was not calculated for the scale and was thus coded as missing data.
| Measure | N | N missing | Mean | SD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Girls (Youth report) (range: 0-8) |
2620 | 10 | 2.16 | 1.61 |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Boys (Youth report) (range: 0-8) |
2808 | 8 | 2.13 | 1.57 |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Girls (Parent report) (range: 0-8) |
1588 | 2 | 1.31 | 1.41 |
| Behavioral and Emotional Problems for Boys (Parent report) (range: 0-8) | 1719 | 3 | 1.77 | 1.65 |
Languages Available
The parent and youth questionnaires can be administered in both English and Spanish.
Items Included
From the NLSY 1997 Parent and Youth Questionnaires, Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Girls:
Items and response categories:
- Your [Your child’s] school work is poor.
- You [Your child] have/has trouble sleeping.
- You [Your child] lie/lies or cheats.
- You [Your child] are/is unhappy, sad or depressed.
Responses were measured on a 3-point scale:
0=Not True
1=Sometimes True
2=Often True
From the NLSY 1997 Parent and Youth Questionnaires, Behavioral and Emotional Problems Scale for Boys:
Items and response categories:
- You [Your child] have/has trouble concentrating or paying attention.
- You [Your child] don’t/doesn’t get along with other kids.
- You [Your child] lie/lies or cheats.
- You [Your child] are/is unhappy, sad or depressed.
Responses were measured on a 3-point scale:
0=Not True
1=Sometimes True
2=Often True
References and Source Documents
Achenbach, T. & Edelbrock, C. (1987). The manual for the Youth Self-report and profile. Burlington, VT: University of Vermont.
Carmine, E.G., & Zeller, R.A. (1985). Reliability and validity assessment. In J.L. Sullivan (Ed.), Quantitative applications in the social sciences. Sage: Beverly Hills, CA.
Ehrle, J. L. & Moore, K. A. (1999). Benchmarking Measures of Child and Family Well-Being in the NSAF. Draft at Child Trends, Inc. http://www.urban.org/content/Research/NewFederalism/NSAF/Methodology/1999MethodologySeries/1999.htm
Moore, W., Pedlow, S., Krishnamurty, P., & Wolter, K. (2000). National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) Technical Sampling Report. Prepared for the Department of Labor by the Center for Human Resource Research The Ohio State University. Retrieved June 9, 2003, from http://www.nlsinfo.org/ordering/display_db.php3
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Longitudinal Survey of Labor Statistics, & National Longitudinal Survey Program. (2002). A Guide to the Rounds 1-4 Data: National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. Retrieved June 9, 2003, from http://www.bls.gov/nls/97guide/nls97usg.htm
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, & National Longitudinal Survey Program. (2002). NLS Handbook 2002 The National Longitudinal Surveys: The NLSY97 (chap. 2). Retrieved June 9, 2003, from http://www.bls.gov/nls/handbook/2002/nlshc2.pdf
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, & Program, N. L. S. (2003). NLSY97. Retrieved June 9, 2003, from http://www.bls.gov/nls/y97summary.htm
University of Michigan, I. f. S. R., Survey Research Center. (n.d.). National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997. Retrieved June 9, 2003, from http://www.isr.umich.edu/src/psid/inventory_table_links/nat_long_surv_youth_1997.htm
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