Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation Scale (ADDES)

Abstract

The Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation Scale (ADDES) is a comprehensive psychometric scale designed for the evaluation and diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorders (ADD) in school-aged children and youth, typically ranging from 4.5 to 18 years. The instrument is notable for its dual-modality approach, offering distinct versions tailored for use in the school setting (ADDES-School) and the home environment (ADDES-Home). Both versions utilize observer ratings to quantify the frequency of specific behaviors related to attention and impulse control. The ADDES-School version contains 60 items across three primary subscales: inattention, impulsiveness, and hyperactivity, while the ADDES-Home version is condensed to 46 items.

Keywords

Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation Scale, ADDES, ADD, Attention Deficit Disorders, Inattention, Hyperactivity, Impulsiveness, Psychological assessment, Rating scale.

Authors

The authors are not explicitly listed in the provided source material.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the ADDES is clinical evaluation and diagnosis. It provides a structured, standardized method for quantifying the frequency and severity of behaviors associated with Attention Deficit Disorders across different ecological settings. By utilizing separate forms for home and school, the scale enables clinicians and educators to gather ecologically valid data necessary for a comprehensive diagnostic profile.

Furthermore, the ADDES serves as a valuable tool for monitoring treatment efficacy. Due to its design allowing for repeated administration over observation or intervention periods, practitioners can objectively assess the presence and persistence of ADD behaviors, facilitating the evaluation of pharmacological or behavioral intervention outcomes.

Construct

The ADDES was meticulously designed to measure the three core behavioral constructs of attention deficit disorders as defined by the criteria established in the DSM-III. These behavioral constructs form the basis of the subscales used in the School Version of the instrument:

• Inattention
• Impulsiveness
• Hyperactivity

The scale operationalizes these constructs by requiring observers (teachers or parents) to use quantifiers to indicate how frequently a child exhibits various behaviors. This observational methodology ensures that the measurement aligns directly with the observable symptoms required for clinical diagnosis.

Validity

Extensive psychometric investigation was undertaken to establish the validity of the ADDES across several critical dimensions.

• Content Validity: This was established through rigorous review. ADD descriptors were reviewed and refined by panels of diagnosticians, parents, and educators, ensuring that the items accurately represented the target behavioral domain.
• Construct Validity: Empirical support for construct validity was gathered through item analysis, focusing on response distributions and item/total score correlations during the refinement of item pools. Crucially, the scale demonstrated the ability to differentiate between known non-ADD children and those identified with ADD within the standardization groups, strongly supporting its ability to measure the intended psychological construct.
• Convergent Validity: This form of validity was confirmed through correlation studies comparing the ADDES scale measures with established instruments. Positive and statistically significant correlations were found between the ADDES and measures obtained from the revised versions of the Conners’ Teacher Rating Scale and the Conners’ Parent Rating Scale.

Reliability

Reliability measures for both the ADDES-School and ADDES-Home versions were comprehensively assessed to ensure consistent and stable scoring. The technical data confirms the measurement of three standard forms of reliability:

• Test-Retest Reliability: This assesses the stability of the scores over time.
• Interrater Reliability: Essential for rating scales dependent on observation, this measure confirms the consistency of scoring between different informants (e.g., different teachers or parents) assessing the same child.
• Internal Consistency Reliability: This indicates the extent to which items within a specific subscale are homogeneous and measure the same underlying trait.

Factor Analysis

The construct validity of the ADDES was empirically verified through Factor analysis during the instrument’s development. This statistical technique was employed to examine the underlying structure of the item set and determine if the behaviors naturally clustered according to the theoretical framework derived from the DSM-III.

The results of the factor analysis successfully confirmed the structure of the instrument, providing empirical support for the three distinct subscales: Inattention, Impulsiveness, and Hyperactivity. This confirmation demonstrates that the instrument possesses a robust and psychometrically confirmed structure.

Instrument

Test Type: Behavioral Rating Scale (Observer-reported)

Format: The scale exists in two formats: the ADDES-School (60 items) and the ADDES-Home (46 items). Observers use quantifiers to indicate the frequency of specific behaviors.

Language Available: English (Based on source material)

Population Group: Children and youth suspected of having Attention Deficit Disorders.

Age Group: 4.5 years to 18 years (Standardization samples extend to 20 or 21 years).

Population Details: The ADDES-School was normed on a substantial sample of 4,876 students (ages 4.5–21, including both attention deficit and non-attention deficit individuals) and 1,567 teachers across 72 school systems in 19 states. The ADDES-Home was normed on 1,754 children (ages 4–20) evaluated by 3,172 parents/guardians across 12 states. Standardization across age-sex levels is critical, utilizing eight groups for the School Version and nine groups for the Home Version.

Test Methodology: Standardized observation and quantification of behavior frequency by trained informants (parents/guardians and educators).

Keywords

Psychological assessment, Behavioral assessment, Child psychology, School psychology, DSM-III criteria, Normative data, Test-retest reliability, Interrater reliability.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A

Correspondence Address: N/A

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: The exact publication year is not provided in the source material, but references suggest publication prior to the publication of The Eighteenth Mental Measurements Yearbook.

Permissions and Fees: Information regarding current testing fees, necessary permissions, and test administration protocols is not available in the source material. Users must consult the official test publisher for licensing details.

Reference’s

• The Eighteenth Mental Measurements Yearbook
• The Nineteenth Mental Measurements Yearbook

Items of the Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation Scale (ADDES)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

The source content does not provide the specific items of the ADDES. However, the structure and content details are preserved below:

The School Version has 60 items divided into three subscales: inattention, impulsiveness, and hyperactivity. Observers use quantifiers to indicate the frequency of different behaviors. The Home Version is similar but contains 46 items.