SynthesisPloS one2019
Predictive validity of preschool screening tools for language and behavioural difficulties: A PRISMA systematic review.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 39 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
39 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Multi-Informant Universal Mental Health Screening for Preschool-Aged Children by Parents and Educators: A PRISMA Systematic Review.Clinical child and family psychology review · 2025Pooled it
- Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Screening Tools for Language Disorder.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2022Pooled it
- Predictive Validity of Developmental Screening Questionnaires for Identifying Children With Later Cognitive or Educational Difficulties: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2021Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Screening tools for early identification of children with developmental delay in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review.BMJ open · 2020Pooled it
- Effects of improved complementary feeding and improved water, sanitation and hygiene on early child development among HIV-exposed children: substudy of a cluster randomised trial in rural Zimbabwe.BMJ global health · 2020Trial
- Longitudinal Stability and Validity of Parent-Reported Mental Health Measures in a Preschool Community Population.Child psychiatry and human development · 2026Article
- Home Learning Environment and Screen Time Differentially Mediate the Relationship Between Socioeconomic Status and Preschoolers' Learning and Behavioural Profiles.Child psychiatry and human development · 2026Article
- Predictive and concurrent validity of caregiver reported early childhood development assessments: A prospective cohort study of Tanzanian children.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Multi-informant reports of preschool mental health: Validation of parent and educator reports and normative data for the preschool Pediatric Symptom Checklist and PSC-17.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2025Article
- Prenatal Cocaine Exposure, Perinatal Risks, and Mediators to Preadolescent Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Life Outcomes in Young Adults With Early Language Difficulties: A County-Based Register Study.Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992) · 2025Article
- Do the early social environment and persistent peripartum depressive symptoms shape toddlers' expressive language?JCPP advances · 2025Article
- When to screen for developmental language disorder: a review of age-specific evidence.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2025Review
- Validity, Reliability, Accessibility, and Applicability of Young Children's Developmental Screening and Assessment Tools across Different Demographics: A Realist Review.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Implementation of the Infant-Toddler Checklist in Swedish child health services at 18 months: an observational study.BMJ paediatrics open · 2024Observational
- The cost-effectiveness of small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements for prevention of child death and malnutrition and promotion of healthy development: modelling results for Uganda.Public health nutrition · 2023Article
- Greater Gestational Vitamin D Status is Associated with Reduced Childhood Behavioral Problems in the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes Program.The Journal of nutrition · 2023Article
- Use of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire in child and school health services among children aged 4 and 6 years in Southern Norway: clinical considerations.BMC pediatrics · 2023Article
- Towards a Characterization of Late Talkers: The Developmental Profile of Children with Late Language Emergence through a Web-Based Communicative-Language Assessment.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPreschool screening for developmental difficulties is increasingly becoming part of routine health service provision and yet the scope and validity of tools used within these screening assessments is variable. The aim of this review is to report on the predictive validity of preschool screening tools for language and behaviour difficulties used in a community setting.
methodsStudies reporting the predictive validity of language or behaviour screening tools in the preschool years were identified through literature searches of Ovid Medline, Embase, EBSCO CINAHL, PsycInfo and ERIC. We selected peer-reviewed journal articles reporting the use of a screening tool for language or behaviour in a population-based sample of children aged 2-6 years of age, including a validated comparison diagnostic assessment and follow-up assessment for calculation of predictive validity.
resultsA total of eleven eligible studies was identified. Six studies reported language screening tools, two reported behaviour screening tools and three reported combined language & behaviour screening tools. The Language Development Survey (LDS) administered at age 2 years achieved the best predictive validity performance of the language screening tools (sens 67%, spec 94%, NPV 88% and PPV 80%). The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) administered at age 4 years achieved the best predictive validity compared to other behaviour screening tools (Sens 31%, spec 93%, NPV 84% and PPV 52%). The SDQ and Sure Start Language Measure (SSLM) administered at 2.5 years achieved the best predictive validity of the combined language & behaviour assessments (sens 87%, spec 64%, NPV 97% and PPV 31). Predictive validity data and diagnostic odds ratios identified language screening tools as more effective and achieving higher sensitivity and positive predictive value than either behaviour or combined screening tools. Screening tools with combined behaviour and language assessments were more specific and achieved higher negative predictive value than individual language or behaviour screening tools. Parent-report screening tools for language achieved higher sensitivity, specificity and negative predictive value than direct child assessment.
conclusionsUniversal screening tools for language and behaviour concerns in preschool aged children used in a community setting can demonstrate excellent predictive validity, particularly when they utilise a parent-report assessment. Incorporating these tools into routine child health surveillance could improve the rate of early identification of language and behavioural difficulties, enabling more informed referrals to specialist services and facilitating access to early intervention.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.