A review of cultural adaptations of screening tools for autism spectrum disorders

Abstract

Screening children to determine risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders has become more common, although some question the advisability of such a strategy. The purpose of this systematic review is to identify autism screening tools that have been adapted for use in cultures different from that in which they were developed, evaluate the cultural adaptation process, report on the psychometric properties of the adapted instruments, and describe the implications for further research and clinical practice. A total of 21 articles met criteria for inclusion, reporting on the cultural adaptation of autism screening in 19 countries and in 10 languages. The cultural adaptation process was not always clearly outlined and often did not include the recommended guidelines. Cultural/linguistic modifications to the translated tools tended to increase with the rigor of the adaptation process. Differences between the psychometric properties of the original and adapted versions were common, indicating the need to obtain normative data on populations to increase the utility of the translated tool.

Lessons learned: Engaging culturally diverse families in neurodevelopmental disorders intervention research

“…Study-specific measures were translated using the process described above for the parent manuals. Inclusion of both linguistic and cultural considerations in translations was vital, given the strong influences of culture on parent perceptions of child behavior and parent responses to questionnaires about neurodevelopmental disorders (Rothe, 2005; Soto et al, 2015). …”

“…Latino families report less familiarity and comfort with clinical research than typical White, high socioeconomic status (SES) research participants (Skaff et al, 2002). Moreover, clinical research trials commonly require English language fluency of participants, due to the lack of treatment protocols (Gerdes and Schneider, 2009; Magaña et al, 2013) and measures available in Spanish (Huey and Polo, 2008; Soto et al, 2015). …”

Modifying the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale (6–18 years) to a Chinese Context: An Exploratory Factor Analysis

“…A questionnaire-based epidemiologic study is an easy and efficient method of screening for ASD in the general population because it is easy to carry out and relatively inexpensive. However, the use of questionnaires relies on each participant’s understanding of the instructions for each individual item, which may vary according to the cultural context in different samples [9, 10]. Factor analysis has been widely used to investigate the latent structure of ASD questionnaires in different populations in cross-cultural environments [11, 12].…”

Are Non-intellectually Disabled Black Youth with ASD Less Impaired on Parent Report than Their White Peers?

“…Several ways in which ethnic differences may emerge have been identified, including differential functioning of assessment measures (particularly parent-report scales), differential responses to the standardized testing environment, differences in cultural expectations for socially appropriate behavior, differences in parental knowledge and beliefs regarding development and mental health, and clinician and referral bias (Norbury and Sparks 2013; Wallis and Pinto-Martin 2008). Soto et al (2014) have also noted that significant adaptations are necessary for use of ASD screening tools across ethnic and cultural groups, given the complexity of these symptoms and the inherent impact of culture in defining appropriate social behavior.…”