Child Behavior

Checklist

The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) is a widely used caregiver report form ident ifying problem
behavior in children.[1][2] It is widely used in bot h research and clinical pract ice wit h yout hs. It has
been t ranslat ed int o more t han 90 languages,[3] and normat ive dat a are available int egrat ing
informat ion from mult iple societ ies. Because a core set of t he it ems have been included in every
version of t he CBCL since t he 1980s, it provides a met er st ick for measuring whet her amount s of
behavior problems have changed over t ime or across societ ies. This is a helpful complement t o
ot her approaches for looking at rat es of ment al-healt h issues, as t he definit ions of disorders
have changed repeat edly over t he same t ime frame.

It is a component in t he Achenbach Syst em of Empirically Based Assessment developed by

Thomas M. Achenbach.

Versions and nature of test

Across versions, t he first pages of t he CBCL record demographic informat ion and rat ings of
posit ive behaviors, academic funct ioning (school aged version only), and social compet ence. The
last t wo pages list common behavior problems, each list ed as a brief st at ement about t he
child's behavior, e.g., Acts too young for his/her age. Responses are recorded on a Likert scale: 0 =
Not True, 1 = Somewhat or Somet imes True, 2 = Very True or Oft en True. The Child Behavior
Checklist exist s in t wo different versions, depending on t he age of t he child being referred t o.
Preschool

For t he preschool version of t he CBCL (CBCL/1½-5), parent s or ot hers who int eract wit h t he
child in regular cont ext s rat e t he child's behavior. Respondent s rat e t he child's behavior on a 3-
point scale (not true, somewhat or sometimes true, and very true or often true), and are inst ruct ed
t o rat e t he behavior as it occurs now or wit hin t he previous t wo mont hs. This delineat ion differs
from t he inst ruct ions on ot her age-versions, due t o t he fact t hat rapid development and
behavioral changes in t he preschool age range are common. The preschool checklist cont ains
100 problem behavior quest ions.

School-age

Like on t he preschool version, t he school-age version of t he CBCL (CBCL/6-18) inst ruct s a

respondent who knows t he child well (usually a parent or ot her close caregiver) t o report on t he
child's problems. Alt ernat ive measures are available for t eachers (t he Teacher's Report Form)
and t he child (t he Yout h Self Report , for yout hs age 11 t o 18 years). The school-age checklist
cont ains 118 problem behavior quest ions.

Scoring

The main scoring for t he CBCL is based on st at ist ical groupings of set s of behaviors t hat
t ypically occur t oget her. The original scale used principal component s analysis t o group t he
it ems, and more recent research has used confirmat ory fact or analysis t o t est t he st ruct ure.
Similar quest ions are grouped int o a number of syndrome scale scores, and t heir scores are
summed t o produce a raw score for t hat syndrome.

The eight empirically-based syndrome scales are:

1. Aggressive Behavior

2. Anxious/Depressed

3. At t ent ion Problems

4. Rule-Breaking Behavior

5. Somat ic Complaint s

6. Social Problems

7. Thought Problems
 8. Wit hdrawn/Depressed.

There are t wo "broad band" scales t hat combine several of t he syndrome scales: Internalizing
problems sums t he Anxious/depressed, Withdrawn-depressed, and Somatic complaints scores;
Externalizing problems combines Rule-breaking and Aggressive behavior. There also is a Total
problems score, which is t he sum of t he scores of all t he problem it ems.

Aft er 2001, t he CBCL also included a set of "DSM-orient ed" scales, made of it ems t hat a panel
of expert s picked as mat ching part s of t he diagnost ic crit eria for DSM-IV disorders. The CBCL
also has a few it ems t hat only cont ribut e t o t he Total score, which were considered clinically
import ant even t hough t oo rare t o lump int o t he syndrome scales.

The CBCL also uses a normat ive sample t o creat e st andard scores. These compare t he raw
score t o what would be t ypical compared t o responses for yout hs of t he same gender and
similar age (t he school-aged version split s t he age groups int o 6–10 years and 11–18 years). The
st andard scores are scaled so t hat 50 is average for t he yout h's age and gender, wit h a st andard
deviat ion of 10 point s. Higher scores indicat e great er problems. For each syndrome, Int ernalizing
and Ext ernalizing problem scales, and t he t ot al score, scores can be int erpret ed as falling in t he
normal, borderline, or clinical behavior. Any score t hat falls below t he 93rd percent ile is
considered normal, scores bet ween t he 93-97t h percent ile are borderline clinical, and any score
above t he 97t h percent ile are in t he clinical range.

Norms t ake int o account bot h age and gender; t here are separat e norms for girls and boys, and
separat e norms for ages 6–11 and ages 12–18.

Psychometric properties

Reliability

Reliabilit y refers t o whet her t he scores are reproducible. Unless ot herwise specified, t he
reliabilit y scores and values come from st udies done wit h a Unit ed St at es populat ion sample.
Rubric for evaluating norms and reliability for the General Behavior Inventory[a]
Rating (adequate,
Criterion good, excellent, too Explanation with references
good[b])

Nat ional probabilit y samples used t o

Norms Excellent
est ablish norms.

Empirically Based Scales [2]

Anxious/Depressed = .84

Wit hdrawn/Depressed = .80

Somat ic Complaint s = .78

Social Problems = .82

Thought Problems = .78

At t ent ion Problems = .86

Rule-Breaking Behavior = .85

Aggressive Behavior = .94

Ranges from Good t o
Int ernal Consist ency Int ernalizing Broad Band Score = .90
Excellent (depending
(Cronbach's alpha)
on scale) Ext ernalizing Broad Band Score =.94

Tot al Problems Score = .97

DSM-Oriented Scales [2]

Affect ive Problems = .82

Anxiet y Problems = .72

Somat ic Problems = .75

ADHD Problems = .84

Opposit ional Defiant Problems = .86

Conduct Problems = .91

Int er-rat er reliabilit y (Pearson Adequat e Empirically Based Scales [2]

rs bet ween mot her and fat her Anxious/Depressed = .68
rat ings)
Wit hdrawn/Depressed = .69
 Somat ic Complaint s = .65

Social Problems = .77

Thought Problems = .75

At t ent ion Problems = .73

Rule-Breaking Behavior = .85

Aggressive Behavior = .82

Int ernalizing Broad Band Score = .72

Ext ernalizing Broad Band Score =.85

Tot al Problems Score = .80

DSM-Oriented Scales [2]

Affect ive Problems = .69

Anxiet y Problems = .66

Somat ic Problems = .63

ADHD Problems = .70

Opposit ional Defiant Problems = .74

Conduct Problems = .88

r = .85 for t he preschool version and r =

Test -ret est reliabilit y Adequat e .90 for t he school-age version over 6–
18 days.[4]

a. Table from Youngstrom et al., extending Hunsley & Mash, 2008

b. Indicates new construct or category

References

1. Achenbach, T.M., & Rescorla, L.A. (2000). Manual for the ASEBA Preschool forms and Profiles.
Burlington, VT: University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry. ISBN 0-938565-68-0

2. Achenbach, T.M., & Rescorla, L. A. (2001). Manual for the ASEBA School-Age Forms and Profiles.
Burlington, VT: University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, and Families. ISBN 0-
938565-73-7
 3. "Translations of ASEBA Forms" (https://web.archive.org/web/20160708132154/http://www.aseba.org/o
rdering/translations.html) . ASEBA: Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment. Thomas
Achenbach. Archived from the original (http://www.aseba.org/ordering/translations.html) on 2016-
07-08. Retrieved 2016-07-10.

4. Maruish, Mark E., ed. (2004). The Use of Psychological Testing for Treatment Planning and Outcomes
Assessment. Mahwah, NJ: Routledge – via http://www.ebrary.com .

External links

Child Behavior Checklist 1½-5 (ht t ps://web.archive.org/web/20130530223759/ht t p://www.ase

ba.org/preschool.ht ml)

Child Behavior Checklist 6–18 (ht t ps://web.archive.org/web/20130531034515/ht t p://www.ase

ba.org/schoolage.ht ml)

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