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Keywords
autism, maladaptive behaviour, Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-II
Abstract
This study evaluated the usefulness of the Maladaptive Behavior Domain of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-II in assessing maladaptive behaviour in children with autism. Our sample was composed of 117 children with autism or Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). Scores from the Maladaptive Behavior Domain were examined in relation to autism severity, cognitive ability, age, gender, and adaptive skills, all of which have been found to be related to maladaptive behaviour in previous research. Our results were mostly inconsistent with recent research, calling into question the validity of the Maladaptive Behavior Domain in its present form for use with children with autism.
It is well known that children with Autistic Disorder (AD) often engage in maladaptive behaviours such as aggression, self-injurious behaviour, and stereotyped behaviour (e.g., Dominick, Davis, Lainhart, Tager-Flusberg, & Folstein, 2007), and that these correlate positively with levels of stress in caregivers (e.g., Hastings, Kovshoff, Ward, degli Espinosa, Brown, & Remington, 2005). The presence of maladaptive behaviours also places a child at a heightened risk for social exclusion and makes it difficult to acquire education in a typical school setting (Horner, Carr, Strain, Todd, & Reed, 2002). Thus, it is important to explore this area in an effort to minimize its negative impact. However, the measurement of maladaptive behaviours is an important issue that has received inadequate attention, and there is no standard measure currently employed. This brief report summarizes findings of a study exploring the use of the Maladaptive Behaviour Domain of the new Vineland scales to measure maladaptive behavior.
The Second Edition of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (Vineland-II; Sparrow, Cicchetti, & Balla, 2005) is an assessment measure of adaptive skills. Along with several other updates, the Vineland-II includes a reorganized its Maladaptive Behavior Domain, which has four sections assessing different groups of maladaptive behaviour: Internalizing, Externalizing, Critical, and...