Wetherby, A., Watt, N., Morgan, L., & Shumway, S. (2007). Social communication profiles of children with autism spectrum disorders in the second year of life. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 37, 960-975.
Abstract
This study examined social communication profiles from behavior samples videotaped between 18 and 24 months of age in three groups of children: 50 with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), 23 with developmental delays (DD), and 50 with typical development (TD). The ASD group scored significantly lower than the DD group on 5 social communication measures and the TD group on all 14 measures, indicating distinct profiles late in the second year. Understanding was the strongest predictor of developmental level and behavior regulation and inventory of gestures were the strongest predictors of autism symptoms at 3 years of age. The predictive relations suggest five pivotal skills late in the second year that have a cascading effect on outcomes of children with ASD.
Watt, N., Wetherby, A., & Shumway, S. (2006). Prelinguistic predictors of language outcome at three years of age. Journal of Speech, Language, & Hearing Research, 49, 1224-1237.
Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the
predictive validity of a collection of prelinguistic skills measured longitudinally
in the second year of life to language outcome in the third year in children
with typical language development.
Method: A collection of prelinguistic skills was assessed
in 160 children early (M=14.31months; SD=1.36) and
late (M=19.76 months; SD=1.16) in the second year
using the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental
Profile Behavior Sample (CSBS DP, Wetherby & Prizant, 2002).
The relationship between the prelinguistic skills and receptive and
expressive language near the third birthday was examined.
Results: Significant correlations were observed between
many prelinguistic skills and language outcome. Regression analyses
indicated that comprehension both early and late contributed unique
variance to receptive and expressive language outcome. In addition,
early in the second year inventory of conventional gestures contributed
uniquely to receptive language outcome, and acts for joint attention
contributed uniquely to expressive outcome. Late in the second year,
inventory of consonants contributed uniquely to expressive outcome.
Conclusions: The findings demonstrate continuity between
prelinguistic and linguistic skills and how individual differences
in a number of prelinguistic skills contribute collectively and uniquely
to language outcome in typically developing children.
Wetherby, A., Woods, J., Allen, L., Cleary, J., Dickinson, H., & Lord, C. (2004). Early indicators of autism spectrum disorders in the second year of life. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34, 473-493.
Abstract
Three groups of 18 children were selected for this study, one group with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), one group with developmental delay in which ASD was ruled out (DD), and one group with typical development (TD), from a pool of 3,026 children who were screened with the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile (CSBS DP, Wetherby & Prizant, 2002) Infant-Toddler Checklist under 24 months of age. The CSBS DP Behavior Sample was videotaped on selected children as a second-level evaluation during the second year of life. The Infant-Toddler Checklist had a sensitivity and specificity of 88.9% for this sample of children. Significant group differences were found on the Infant-Toddler Checklist and the Behavior Sample, however, these differences did not distinguish children with ASD and DD with high accuracy. The videotapes of the Behavior Sample were reanalyzed to identify red flags of ASD. Nine red flags differentiated children in the ASD group from both the DD and TD groups and four red flags differentiated children in the ASD Group from the TD group but not the DD group. These 13 red flags were found to discriminate the three groups with a correct classification rate of 94.4%.
Wetherby, A., Goldstein, H., Cleary, J., Allen, L., & Kublin, K. (2003). Early identification of children with communication delays: Concurrent and Predictive Validity of the CSBS Developmental Profile. Infants and Young Children, 16, 161-174.
Abstract
Communication disorders in infants and toddlers are significantly under-identified, prohibiting early intervention for many children and families who might benefit from services. Researchers have sought to identify earlier and more accurate predictors of later language development. This article describes the FIRST WORDS Project evaluation model for identifying children less than 24 months of age who are at risk for communication disorders using the CSBS Developmental Profile (CSBS DP, Wetherby & Prizant, 1998; 2002). Children were first screened with a brief parent-report checklist distributed by healthcare and childcare providers and other community agencies serving families of young children. Children were followed up with a more in-depth parent report tool and face-to-face evaluation. This paper presents the results of two studies. The first study examined the concurrent validity of the CSBS DP based on screening and evaluation with the CSBS DP for 232 children between 12 and 24 months of age. The second study examined the predictive validity of the CSBS DP based on follow-up testing of receptive and expressive language for 246 children at 2 years of age and 108 children at 3 years of age. These findings support the use of prelinguistic predictors and the important role of the family in screening and evaluation to improve early identification.
Wetherby, A., Allen, L., Cleary, J., Kublin, K., & Goldstein, H.
(2002). Validity and reliability of the Communication and Symbolic
Behavior Scales Developmental Profile with very young children. Journal
of Speech, Language, & Hearing Research, 45, 1202-1219.
Abstract
Three studies were conducted to evaluate the validity and reliability of the three measures of the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile (CSBS DP)— 1) a one-page parent-report Checklist; 2) a four-page follow-up Caregiver Questionnaire (CQ); and 3) a Behavior Sample (BS), which is a face-to-face evaluation of the child. Participants for these studies were drawn from a pool of 603 children for the Checklist and CQ (ages 6-24 months) and 364 children for the BS (ages 12-24 months). Study 1 examined the concurrent relationship of standard scores for the Checklist, CQ, and BS. Large correlations were found between the Checklist and CQ and moderate to large correlations were found between each of the parent report tools and the BS. Study 2 examined test-retest stability by comparing the raw and standard scores over a 4-month retest interval. The results indicated significantly greater retest raw scores but no significant differences between standard scores from test to retest for the Checklist, CQ and BS, providing evidence that the three measures detect growth over short periods but produce relatively stable rankings of children. Study 3 examined the concurrent and predictive relationship of the three CSBS DP measures and children’s outcomes on standardized tests of receptive and expressive language at two years of age. Moderate to large correlations were found between all of the CSBS DP measures and language outcomes at two. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the three composites were a significant predictor of receptive and expressive language outcomes. The findings from these three studies support the use of the CSBS DP as a screening and evaluation tool for identifying children with developmental delays at 12 to 24 months of age.