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Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research

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01-11-2006

Are CAFAS Subscales and Item Weights Valid? A Preliminary Investigation of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale

Authors: Michael P. Bates, Michael J. Furlong, Jennifer Greif Green

Published in: Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research | Issue 6/2006

Abstract

Presents a psychometric analysis of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS), one of the most commonly used measures of functional impairment in youths with emotional and behavioral disorders. Specific aims of the current investigation were to (a) examine the conceptual organization of the CAFAS items, (b) explore its scaling properties, and (c) investigate its construct validity. In Phase 1, a group of advanced graduate students and clinicians rated CAFAS items with respect to the degree that they reflect the originally assigned subscales. In Phase 2, additional raters assigned severity values to the subset of CAFAS items selected from Phase 1. Items were then scaled using simplified successive intervals scaling techniques. Results show differences between new empirically derived item weights and the original scoring method. This investigation highlights the benefits of continued examination and critique of level-of-functioning scaling for diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis in children and adolescents.

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Title: Are CAFAS Subscales and Item Weights Valid? A Preliminary Investigation of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale
Authors: Michael P. Bates
Michael J. Furlong
Jennifer Greif Green
Publication date: 01-11-2006
Publisher: Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers
Published in: Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research / Issue 6/2006
Print ISSN: 0894-587X
Electronic ISSN: 1573-3289
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-006-0052-4

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Are CAFAS Subscales and Item Weights Valid? A Preliminary Investigation of the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale

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