Factor Structure of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist in Individuals with Fragile X Syndrome: Clarifications and Future Guidance
The Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) is a standardized rating scale used for assessing problematic behavior of individuals with developmental disabilities. It has five subscales: Irritability, Social Withdrawal, Stereotypic Behavior, Hyperactivity, and Inappropriate Speech.
A previous study in individuals with Fragile X syndrome reported six factors, with the Social Withdrawal factor branching into Socially Unresponsive and Social Avoidance factors, suggesting a different factor structure in people with FXS.
This study questions whether the newer FXS scoring algorithm (6 subscales rather than 5) contributes data that are consistently helpful in evaluating behavior of people with FXS.
In general, the study recommends continued use of the original ABC algorithm for scoring behavior of clients with FXS. However, they acknowledge that there may be circumscribed times when the new algorithm may be appropriate for scoring, namely when anxiety or social avoidance constructs are the central and unequivocal domains of interest.
Michael G. Aman, Megan Norris, Aaron J. Kaat, Howard Andrews, Tse-Hwei Choo, Chen Chen, Anne Wheeler, Carla Bann, and Craig Erickson. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology. Oct 2020.512-521. http://doi.org/10.1089/cap.2019.0177
