Psychometric Properties of the Revised Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire

Abstract

The Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire (DCDQ) is a parent-completed measure designed to identify subtle motor problems in children of 8 to 14.6 years of age. The purpose of this study was to extend the lower age range to children aged 5 to 7 years, revise items to ensure clarity, develop new scoring, and evaluate validity of the revised questionnaire. Additional items with improved wording were generated by an expert panel. Analyses of internal consistency, factor loading, and qualitative/quantitative feedback from researchers, clinicians, and parents were used to select 15 items with the strongest psychometric properties. Internal consistency was high (alpha = .94). The expanded questionnaire was completed by the parents of 287 children, aged 5-15 years, who were typically developing. Logistic regression modeling was used to generate separate cutoff scores for three age groups (overall sensitivity = 85%, specificity = 71%). The revised DCDQ was then compared to other standardized measures in a sample of 232 children referred for therapy services. Differences in scores between children with and without DCD (p < .001) provide evidence of construct validity. Correlations between DCDQ scores and Movement Assessment Battery for Children (r = .55) and Test of Visual-Motor Integration (r = .42) scores support concurrent validity. The results provide evidence that the revised DCDQ is a valid clinical screening tool for DCD.

Cross-cultural adaptation of the Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire (DCDQ’07) for the population of Polish children

“…A similar result was reached by Wilson et al (2009) when developing the revised version of the DCDQ'07 used in the present study [32]. The specificity of the DCDQ'07-PL, while significant, was below the standard recommended by the APA (2000).…”

“…The scores are interpreted with cut-off points for three different age groups (5-8, 8-11, 11-15 years old). Depending on the total score, the parent is informed if their child likely has or does not have DCD, where the latter would indicate the need for a more specialized diagnosis [32].…”

“…As this disorder impedes motor function in numerous activities that are a part of daily life, affected children are less physically adept than their peers and frequently avoid play or physical activity [14,15,24]. Consequently, DCD shows comorbidity with behavioural disorders such as low self-esteem and negative body image, anxiety and interpersonal difficulties [8,27,32]. These, in turn, may lead to obesity and other metabolic, cardiovascular and digestive diseases [9].…”

The motor profile of preterm infants at 11 y of age

“…The results of the DCDQ'07 were only used to support the results of the MABC-2 as the DCDQ'07 is not designed to be used alone to identify DCD. Instead, the diagnosis also requires valid clinical measures (13). The presence of DCD was defined according to International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10), which is used in many countries.…”

“…The Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire 2007 (DCDQ'07) is a parent report developed to assist in the identification of DCD. The sensitivity and the specificity of this revised questionnaire are 89 and 76%, respectively, in the age group of 10-15 y (13).…”