The factor structure and validity of strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ) as a screener for special educational needs in Singapore

• Main Author: Yeo, Venise Kay Xing
• Other Authors: Setoh Pei Pei
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2023
• Subjects: Social sciences::Psychology
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/172481
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

This study investigated the teacher-reported SDQ's factor structure and efficacy in predicting special educational needs (SEN) and specific diagnoses. Analysis was conducted using secondary data from the Singapore Kindergarten Impact Project (n = 1118) and Transition and Adjustment of Children with Special Educational Needs (n = 375). The best-fitting structure invariant across typically developing and SEN children was the five-factor structure with Peer Problems (Peer), Emotional Symptoms (Emot), Conduct Problems (Cond), Hyperactivity/Inattention (Hype) and Positive Construal (Pos). Pos contains items designed to measure Prosocial Behaviour (Pros) and other positively-worded items. The SEN’s structure only emerged after allowing minor cross-loadings through exploratory structural equation modelling (ESEM), suggesting that existing literature’s factor structures are less applicable to SEN. The four difficulties summed scores produced Total Difficulties (Tot), which was included in logistic regression. Results revealed that Hype, Peer, and Tot predicted SEN, Peer and Tot predicted Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and Cond, Hype, Peer, and Tot predicted Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), after controlling for age. No SDQ factor predicted Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) or Intellectual Disability (ID). The SDQ may be more applicable as a screener for ASD and ADHD and should not predict SEN as a homogenous group. This study established the SDQ’s factor structure invariance across typically developing and SEN children and identified the SDQ’s limited applicability in screening for certain diagnoses (e.g., SLD, ID) in Singapore’s context. Further studies should be conducted to better understand the range of diagnoses that the SDQ is applicable to as a screener.