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A ROAD MAP FOR THE CHILDREN’S SOCIO-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPTIONS DOCUMENTS
This chapter presents information relevant to the construct of internalizing/externalizing behavior problems across the main ACF evaluations and the additional studies selected for the EDCP for which items related to internalizing/externalizing behavior problems are available (i.e., 5 of the 9 main ACF evaluations and 8 of the 13 additional studies selected for the EDCP). These evaluations and surveys, are listed below.
| Evaluation/Survey |
| Enhanced Services for the Hard to Employ Demonstration and Evaluation Project |
| Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES) |
| Early Head Start Evaluation and Tracking Pre-K Followup (EHS and TPK) |
| National Head Start Impact Study |
| National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) |
| Panel Study of Income Dynamics, Child Development Supplement |
| National Survey of America's Families (NSAF) |
| National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 (NLSY97) |
| National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health |
| NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development |
| Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K) |
| National Household Education Survey (NHES) |
| National Study of Child Care for Low-Income Families |
Two tables are presented on the following pages, one for the ACF evaluations and one for the additional studies selected for the EDCP. These tables give an overview that shows the types of measures available for each evaluation and survey in this chapter and indicates the primary reporter for each measure.
For each evaluation and survey, a series of key information is described, including population assessed, periodicity, major components, procedures for administration, and a compilation of items that assess internalizing/externalizing behavior problems. Although all the items in this chapter are used to measure internalizing/externalizing behavior problems, the components of each evaluation or survey vary slightly in focus. For example, many of the evaluations, such as Enhanced Services for the Hard to Employ, FACES, the National Head Start Impact Study, and the NSCAW, measure positive aspects of child behavior as well as behavior problems. Studies such as the National Head Start Impact Study and the NSCAW include a particularly rich array of socio-emotional child outcome measures. For instance, the National Head Start Impact Study includes relationship-oriented measures that assess children’s closeness to and dependence on parents and teachers, and the NSCAW includes measures that specifically tap depression and the children’s feelings about their social dissatisfaction and peer relationships. Some of the measures used in these evaluations, such as the various derivations of the Achenbach scales (e.g., Child Behavior Checklist; CBCL) and the Social Skills Ratings Scale used in the Enhanced Services for the Hard to Employ, FACES, and NSCAW studies, are applicable to a wide range of child ages. Others, such as the Infant Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (ITSEA) used in the Enhanced Services for the Hard to Employ evaluation, have more restricted age ranges. The ITSEA, for instance, is appropriate for children between the ages of 12 and 48 months, whereas versions of the Achenbach scales can be used through adulthood. Many of the studies used multiple reporters in their measurement of socio-emotional outcomes (e.g., parent, teacher). In particular, the NSCAW used parent and teacher reports, as well as the self-reports of the children.
At this stage of the EDCP, no analysis and synthesis of items across evaluations and surveys have been attempted; rather the information is described separately for each evaluation and survey. Readers interested in developing items to assess internalizing/externalizing behavior problems are encouraged both to examine the items included here and to return to the original evaluations and surveys to ensure that they understand the items in context and to obtain full skip patterns, response options, and other important information.
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