Assessment of children's communicative participation: a preliminary study on the validity and reliability of the Italian Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six (FOCUS-I) in preschool age

Validity and Reliability Study of the Turkish Version of Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six-34

PURPOSE

Speech and language disorders can negatively affect preschool children's communicative participation skills. Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six-34 (FOCUS-34) is a valid and reliable scale that evaluates communicative participation in preschool children with speech and language disorders. This study aimed to establish the Turkish version of FOCUS-34 (FOCUS-34-TR) and investigate its validity and reliability.

METHOD

A total of 175 children with language disorders, speech sound disorders, and fluency disorders (aged 20-72 months) and their parents were included in the study. Parents were asked to complete the demographic information form, the FOCUS-34-TR scale, and the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ-SE) Turkish version. The construct validity, convergent and divergent validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability of the scale were investigated.

RESULTS

The FOCUS-34-TR had high values for internal consistency (α = .97) and test-retest reliability (r = .95). The correlations between the FOCUS-34-TR total score and its subscales were between .77 and .90. A moderately significant negative correlation was found between the FOCUS-34-TR scale and the ASQ-SE.

CONCLUSION

The Turkish version of FOCUS-34 is a valid and reliable scale that can be used in clinics and for research purposes to evaluate the communicative participation skills of Turkish-speaking preschool children with speech and language disorders.

Construct validity of the focus on the outcomes of communication under six (FOCUS) total and profile scores for multilingual preschoolers: Considering functional speech skills

PURPOSE

To conduct an exploratory study to establish construct validity of the Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six (FOCUS) in the Jamaican context for FOCUS Total and Profile scores.

METHOD

Parents of a representative sample of 3-to-6-year-old Jamaican Creole (JC)-English-speaking simultaneous bilingual children completed the FOCUS in English, and the Intelligibility in Context Scale (ICS) in JC and in English. Children completed the Diagnostic Evaluation of Articulation and Phonology (DEAP) in both languages. Percent phonemes, consonants, and vowels correct were calculated using single word responses to DEAP items. Pearson correlations were completed to describe relationships between measurement scores.

RESULT

Convergent validity was found for FOCUS Total and ICS/JC scores. Convergent and divergent validity were found for specific FOCUS Profile scores and ICS/JC scores. Minimal evidence of convergent validity was found with FOCUS Total scores and transcription-based measures of speech production in JC and in English. Convergent and divergent validity were found between specific FOCUS Profile scores and some transcription-based measures of speech production in JC and in English.

CONCLUSION

This study provides evidence of construct validity for FOCUS Total and Profile scores. It also provides validity evidence for FOCUS scores in a multilingual context using a representative sample of children that serves to broaden the range of applicability of the FOCUS.

Characterizing Communicative Participation in Multilingual Jamaican Preschoolers

PURPOSE

This study characterized communicative participation and related aspects of functional communication for Jamaican Creole (JC)-English-speaking preschoolers with and without functionally defined speech sound disorders (fSSDs). This study included parent reports and direct assessment measures from an existing corpus of baseline data collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHOD

The communicative participation of typically developing (TD; n = 226) bilingual JC-English-speaking preschoolers and those with fSSDs (n = 39) was documented using the Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six (FOCUS). Functional speech intelligibility was recorded using the Intelligibility in Context Scale (ICS) in English and JC (ICS-JC). Objective measures of speech production were collected through direct child assessment in both languages and then transcribed and calculated for percent of consonants (PCC), vowels (PVC), and phonemes correct (PPC). Within-group relationships were explored using association testing, and differences between groups were explored through multivariate analyses.

RESULTS

FOCUS scores and ICS and ICS-JC scores were found to be minimally to moderately related for Jamaican preschoolers in the TD group (r = .28-.34, p < .002) and strongly related in the fSSD group (r = .56-.60, p < .002). No relations were observed between the FOCUS scores and PCC/PVC/PPC in either language. There was a statistically significant difference between all FOCUS scores for Jamaican preschoolers in the TD and fSSD groups (p ≤ .002).

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provide additional evidence for using the FOCUS beyond documenting change in communicative participation to support clinical decision-making in planning and developing speech-language interventions. This study also documents an important characterization of JC-English-speaking children with and without fSSDs, offering data on children's abilities that can be used in future comparisons of communicative participation and speech functioning observed during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.

Assessing communicative participation in preschool children with the Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six: a scoping review

AIM

To describe uses of the Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six (FOCUS) in research with children with and without various communication disorders since its publication in 2010.

METHOD

Six databases were searched for the term 'Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six'. With additional searches we ascertained 70 articles, of which 25 met inclusion criteria for full review and data extraction.

RESULTS

The FOCUS has been used in research across multiple countries, purposes, populations, contexts, and versions. Evaluative studies have described: the development of children's communicative participation skills and factors that impact the development of communicative participation; the impact of specific interventions on communicative participation; how FOCUS captures change relative to measures of impairment; and how FOCUS performs when used at different intervals. Adaptations have included: use of the FOCUS as a descriptive or discriminative tool; use with children outside the validated age range; use of select items; and use with typically developing children.

INTERPRETATION

The FOCUS is used worldwide in research and practice, and much has been learned about children's communicative participation. Future research is needed to explore the relationship between children's impairments and their communicative participation, develop a FOCUS App, and develop and validate a FOCUS for school-age children.