The Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC) Appraisal Procedures in Counseling Monica Piotrowski Tyler Kopplin

Overview Created by Randy Kamphaus and Cecil Reynolds in 1992. Revised in 2003 (BASC-2) Originally designed to evaluate the psychological problems in children and adolescents between ages 2.5 and 18 years. BASC-2 includes evaluation of various aspects of behavior and personality. Also expanded to ages 2-25 years. Administered mostly by school psychologist or psychiatrists.

Purpose of BASC-2 To address children's emotional and behavioral health. Evaluate and address behavioral and emotional issues that may impede an individual's ability to succeed in home and school environments. Differentiate between hyperactivity and attention problems with one efficient instrument. Monitor treatment interventions and outcomes.

Components of BASC-2 Teacher rating scale (TRS) Parent rating scale (PRS) Self-report of personality (SRP) Student Observation System (SOS) Structured developmental history (SDH)

Method of Analyzing Behavior

What does BASC-2 evaluate? Inattention/Hyperactivity School Problems Personal Adjustment Internalizing Problems

Teacher Rating Scale (TRS) Measures adaptive and problem behaviors in school setting. Rated on a four point scale (N=Never, S=Sometimes, O=Often, A=Almost Always) Contains 100-139 items and takes 10-20 minutes to complete. Answers correspond to 0-1-2-3 points providing a raw score which is then converted into a normative score. T-score delegates the distance of a raw score from the norm- group mean. A percentile rank indicates the percentage of the norm sample scoring below the given raw score.

Parent Rating Scales (PRS) Helps measure both adaptive and problem behaviors in a community and home setting. Contains 134-160 items. Four point response format (N=Never, S=Sometimes, O=Often, A=Almost Always) Answers correspond to 0-1-2-3 points providing a raw score which is then converted into a normative score. T-score delegates the distance of a raw score from the norm- group mean. A percentile rank indicates the percentage of the norm sample scoring below the given raw score.

Structured Development History (SDH) Comprehensive history and background service that reviews social, psychological, developmental, and medical information of child. Completed by parents.

Student Observation System or Portable Observation Program Direct observations of child's behavior Allows for peer comparison as you collect information. Fast report writing and direct recording of information to computer. 15 minutes

Self-Report of Personality (SRP) Provides insight into thoughts and feelings. Available forms for all age levels. Scales rate anxiety, attitude toward school and teachers, interpersonal relationships, locus of control, relations with parents, self-esteem, and social stress. Takes about 30 minutes to complete. Includes validity scales to judge quality of completed forms. Spanish version is available for child and adolescent forms.

What does the SRP tell us? Helps determine if child has a healthy self- perception. Looks for adjustment within school and social situations. Can help diagnose hyperactivity and attention problems.

Reliability Excellent to acceptable. Generally in the .90 range for composite scales and .80 range for individual scales across all forms (TRS, PRS, SRP) Test-retest reliability yielded average correlations in the .80 range for composite scores and between .70- .80 for individual scales across all ages Highest test-retest correlations for the TRS and PRS are hyperactivity, aggression, withdrawal, and attention problems.

Validity Construct validity for internalizing and externalizing dimensions of the BASC-2 scales is supported by results of factor and structural equation analysis. Support has been found for the validity of the PRS and TRS for assessment and identification of children with ADHD.

Benefits of BASC-2 Multidimensional approach for conducting a comprehensive assessment. Strong theory base and research supported. Norm based on current U.S. Census population, male norms, female norms, and clinical norms. Can evaluate wide range of children using BASC-2. High reliability and validity.

Limitations Cannot assess for future risk in drug and alcohol misuse. Expensive Limited validity information about preschoolers.

Sources http://basc.szapkiw.com/basc_summary.html http://basc.szapkiw.com/bascbasics.html http://www.pearsonassessments.com/HAIWEB/Cult ures/en-us/Productdetail.htm?Pid=PAa30000