Advisor
Ferrell, Kay Alicyn, 1948-
Advisor
Banerjee, Rashida
Committee Member
Mueller, Tracy G.
Committee Member
Peterson, Eric
Department
Special Education
Institution
University of Northern Colorado
Type of Resources
Text
Place of Publication
Greeley (Colo.)
Publisher
University of Northern Colorado
Date Created
5-1-2015
Genre
Thesis
Extent
159 pages
Digital Origin
Born digital
Description
Early identification and intervention have been shown to be effective in reducing disability severity caused by autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). In Taiwan, the lack of a culturally appropriate and validated autism screening tool for Taiwanese children has significantly impeded the effectiveness of identifying children who might benefit from early intervention services. The present study employed a cross-sectional survey to investigate the culturally appropriateness, reliability and validity of the translated Chinese Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) for young children in Taiwan. The M-CHAT is a parent-report, free, and widely used autism screening instrument in the United States. A total of 138 participants including 100 parents of typically developing children, 20 parents of children with autism, and 18 professionals completed the questionnaires designed based on the 23 items of the translated Chinese M-CHAT. The analyses showed significant and positive findings in both quantitative analysis and qualitative evaluation of rationales and comments. As a result, the Chinese M-CHAT was a culturally appropriate autism screening instrument for young children in Taiwan and demonstrated satisfactory test-retest reliability, internal consistency, criterion validity, and content validity. However, some issues raised by parents and professionals regarding additional examples for some test items and modification for the meaning of words in specific items may be necessary to overcome cultural differences for parents in Taiwan. Future researches should include a broader range of participants from more diverse areas of Taiwan to provide more sound and impartial information about Taiwanese perceptions of the translated Chinese M-CHAT. In addition, a more precise diagnosis by validated diagnostic tool and careful interpretation of the test result by well-trained professionals can avoid research bias. Overall, this study contributes to the issues related to cross-cultural assessment and has important ethical and practical implications for early identification and early intervention of children with ASD in Taiwan.
Degree type
PhD
Degree Name
Doctoral
Place
Taiwan
Language
English
Local Identifiers
Lin_unco_0161D_10398
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by author.
