Problems in Using Diagnosis in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Research
This paper presents results from a three-part study on diagnosis of children with affective and behavior disorders. We examined the reliability, discriminant, and predictive validity of common diagnoses used in mental health services research using a research diagnostic interview. Results suggest fo...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
University of Arizona Libraries
2012-10-01
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| Series: | Journal of Methods and Measurement in the Social Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.uair.arizona.edu/index.php/jmmss/article/view/16110 |
| Summary: | This paper presents results from a three-part study on diagnosis of children with affective and behavior disorders. We examined the reliability, discriminant, and predictive validity of common diagnoses used in mental health services research using a research diagnostic interview. Results suggest four problems: a) some diagnoses demonstrate internal consistency only slightly better than symptoms chosen at random; b) diagnosis did not add appreciably to a brief global functioning screen in predicting service use; c) low inter-rater reliability among informants and clinicians for six of the most common diagnoses; and d) clinician diagnoses differed between sites in ways that reflect different reimbursement strategies. The study concludes that clinicians and researchers should not assume diagnosis is a useful measure of child and adolescent problems and outcomes until there is more evidence supporting the validity of diagnosis.
DOI:10.2458/azu_jmmss_v3i1_bickman |
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| ISSN: | 2159-7855 |