Principles of Developmental
Assessment
PSY 417
Assessment
Zero to Three Work Group: “Process designed to
deepen an understanding of a child’s
competencies and resources, and of the
caregiving and learning environments most likely
to help a child make the fullest use of his/her
developmental potential. Assessment should be
an ongoing, collaborative process of systematic
observation and analysis. This process involves
formulating questions, gathering information,
sharing observations, and making interpretations
in order to form new questions (1994).”
8 Principles
 1.
Reliance on integrated model of infant
and child development.
 2. Use of multiple sources of information,
strategies and data points.
 3. Sequence that begins with gathering
information from and planning assessment
strategies with parents.
 4. Clear understanding of typical
development.
8 Principles
5. Emphasis on child’s “level and pattern of
organizing experiential and functional capacities,
which represent an integration of emotional and
cognitive abilities.”
 6. Identification of abilities, strengths and needs.
 7. Collaboration with families and among
assessors.
 8. Recognition that assessment is simply a first
step in intervention.

Practices to be Followed with
Young Children
 Should
never be separated from caregiver.
 Should never be tested by strange
examiner.
 Assessment should not be limited to
assessment of motor and cognitive skills.
 Should rely on more than formal
tests/tools.
Purposes of Assessment
 Screening

High false positive
 Diagnosis
 Determining
Eligibility for Services
 Planning Intervention
 Evaluating Treatment Outcomes
Limited Predictive Validity
 Developmental
assessments have low
predictability for later ability



Correlation between late toddler scores on
developmental tests (e.g., Bayley) and later
childhood IQ is at best r = .49
Even worse when measured earlier (r=.06
when Bayley done in first 6 months)
For comparison, correlation between child
and parents’ IQ is r=.42
• If you want to know the child’s IQ in infancy, you’re
better off testing the parent
Reasons for Low Predictive Validity


Measures during infancy very different from
measures during childhood
Hard to obtain valid measure of infant
competence
•
•
•
•
Activity level/distractability
Variable states/attention spans
Wariness of strangers
Inconsistent performance in an unfamiliar
environment
Predictive Validity
 On


the other hand…
Predictive validity is somewhat better with
developmentally delayed children
This is because VERY low scores on infant
development tests tend to be predictive
What can early childhood cognitive
assessments do?
 Rule
out sever MR
 Justify the need for early intervention
services
 Help determine focus and approach of
those services
 Monitor the effectiveness of those services
Importance of Context
 “Developmental
psychology is the science
of the strange behavior of children in
strange places with strange people for the
briefest possible periods of time.”

Uri Bronfenbrenner, Human Ecology (1979)
Context of Assessment
 Most
empirical work in child development
lacks appreciation for environmental
context
 However, research clearly shows that
early childhood behavior is highly
dependent on relational context
Context of Assessment
 Environmental
context may be even more
important in understanding behavior of
atypical infants than typical infants


They are developmentally younger so they
are less independent
Processing problems often make them more
at the mercy of environmental challenges
Context of Assessment
 When
evaluating infant you are testing two
things:


Their ability to complete the requested task
Their willingness to engage in the unique
social relationship of assessment
 Establishing

Rapport
Need to gain trust
Before Assessment
 Meet
parents/caregivers first
 Learn about child’s:
•
•
•
•
 Use
Language abilities
Preferences/interests
Approach/withdrawal style
Sensory issues
this to plan assessment and approach
During Initial Assessment

Talk to parents but concentrate on child
 Take notes on what you observe child doing



Tailor the environment




How do they enter room, request help?
What is spontaneous language like, eye contact, etc.?
Lighting
Windows to playground?
Background noise?
Best environments are low stimulation without
being sterile
Adapt Yourself
 Do

not come on too strong
Be friendly without being overly intense
 Be
flexible on how much time toddlers
need to acclimated
 Gradually move into assessment

Initial chatting with parents, to chatting with
child, to talking about assessment, to
administering items