Psychometric Characteristics of the Postconcussion Symptom Inventory in Children and Adolescents

• Published in: Archives of clinical neuropsychology Vol. 29; no. 4; pp. 348 - 363
• Main Authors: SADY, Maegan D, VAUGHAN, Christopher G, GIOIA, Gerard A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Oxford University Press 01.06.2014
• Subjects: Adolescent; Age Factors; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; Developmental Disabilities - diagnosis; Developmental Disabilities - psychology; Female; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Original Empirical; Post-Concussion Syndrome - diagnosis; Post-Concussion Syndrome - psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychometrics - methods; Psychometrics. Diagnostic aid systems; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Reproducibility of Results; Self Report; Techniques and methods; Symptom checklists; Questionnaire; Traumatic brain injury; Internal consistency; Late effects of head injury; Construct validity; Convergent validity; Complication; Child; Human; Preschool age; Intraclass correlation coefficient; Nervous system diseases; Factor analysis; Psychometrics; Test reliability; Trauma; Intertrial interval; Brain concussion; Item analysis; Test validation; Symptomatology; School age; Central nervous system disease; Adolescent; Head trauma
• ISSN: 0887-6177; 1873-5843
• DOI: 10.1093/arclin/acu014

Psychometric characteristics of the Postconcussion Symptom Inventory (PCSI) were examined in both concussed (n = 633) and uninjured (n = 1,273) 5 to 18 year olds. Parent- and self-report forms were created with developmentally appropriate wording and content. Factor analyses identified physical, cognitive, emotional, and sleep factors; that did not load strongly or discriminate between groups were eliminated. Internal consistency was strong for the total scales (α = 0.8-0.9). Test-retest reliability for the self-report forms was moderate to strong (intraclass coeffecients, ICCs = 0.65-0.89). Parent and self-report concordance was moderate (r = .44-.65), underscoring the importance of both perspectives. Convergent validity with another symptom measure was good (r = .8). Classification analyses indicated greater discriminability from parent report, but caveats to this are presented. With strong psychometric characteristics, the four versions of the PCSI capture important postconcussion symptoms and can be utilized to track recovery from pediatric concussion and guide treatment recommendations.