The present study examined the reliability, validity, and clinical utility of the "Oppositional Defiant Disorder Rating Scale" (ODDRS) in a population of children referred for ADHD evaluation. The diagnostic benefit of using a rating scale specific to Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), in addition to a broad range behavior scale, was…

A wealth of evidence attests to the extensive current and lifetime diagnostic comorbidity of the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (4th ed., "DSM-IV") anxiety and mood disorders. Research has shown that the considerable cross-sectional covariation of "DSM-IV" emotional disorders is accounted for by common higher order…

Abused children may be at risk for problems with aggression. In a sample of 397 seriously emotionally disturbed children, reactive aggression was associated with documented history of physical abuse but not sexual abuse. Girls were equally likely to be classified as reactively aggressive regardless of physical abuse history, but boys with physical…

The etiology of autism spectrum disorders is unknown but there are claims of increasing prevalence in many countries. Despite more than a decade of epidemiological investigation, it is still unclear whether the rising trend in prevalence reflects a true increase or changes in diagnostic trends and improvements in case ascertainment. This paper…

This simulation study sought to compare four different computerized adaptive testing (CAT) content-balancing procedures designed for use in a multidimensional assessment with respect to measurement precision, symptom severity classification, validity of clinical diagnostic recommendations, and sensitivity to atypical responding. The four…

We investigated if shifts in the coding of qualifying conditions in the California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) have contributed to the increase in California children with autism observed in recent years. Qualifying condition codes for mental retardation (MR) and autism in DDS electronic files were compared to hard-copy records for…

The last 50 years have witnessed enormous strides in the measurement and classification of child and adolescent psychiatric disorders. Debates about whether we should continue to depend upon a categorical nosology still continue, but we argue that, despite the absence of clear dividing lines between psychiatric disorders and normality and ubiquity…

The effort to make schools more inclusive, together with the pressure to retain students until the end of secondary school, has greatly increased both the number and educational requirements of students enrolling in their local school. Of critical concern, despite years of research and improvements in policy, pedagogy and educational knowledge, is…

Responds to the comments by H. N. Garb (2007) and A. M. Ruscio (2007) on the current authors' original article "Plate tectonics in the classification of personality disorder: Shifting to a dimensional model" (2007). Unable to respond to all of Garb's and Ruscio's concerns given space limitations, the current authors attempt to respond to key…

Psychological assessment research concerns how to describe psychological dysfunction in ways that are both valid and useful. Recent advances in assessment research hold the promise of facilitating significant improvements in description and diagnosis. One such contribution is in the classification of personality disorder symptomatology. The…

With advances in obstetric and perinatal management, the incidence of intraventricular hemorrhage in premature infants has declined, while periventricular leukomalacia remains a significant concern. It is now known that brain injury in children born preterm also involves neuronal-axonal disease in supratentorial and infratentorial structures. The…

The heterogeneity found in autism and related disorders (i.e., "autism spectrum disorders") is widely acknowledged. Even within a specific disorder, such as Autistic Disorder, the range in abilities and clinical presentation is broad. The heterogeneity observed has prompted many researchers to propose subtypes beyond the commonly used DSM-IV-TR…

Hierarchical classes models are models for "N"-way "N"-mode data that represent the association among the "N" modes and simultaneously yield, for each mode, a hierarchical classification of its elements. In this paper we present a stochastic extension of the hierarchical classes model for two-way two-mode binary data. In line with the original…

Comments on the original article "Plate tectonics in the classification of personality disorder: Shifting to a dimensional model," by T. A. Widiger and T. J. Trull (2007). Widiger and Trull raised important nosological issues that warrant serious consideration not only for the personality disorders but for all mental disorders as the Diagnostic…

Early intervention has been reported to improve outcome in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Several studies in the field have been randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The aim of this study was to assess ASD outcome in a large naturalistic study. Two hundred and eight children, aged 20-54 months, with a clinical diagnosis of ASD…