Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39821722›Full record

ArticleJournal of autism and developmental disorders2026

A Concurrent Validity Study of the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL) and the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Developmental Inventory (CDI) in Infants with an Elevated Likelihood or Diagnosis of Autism.

Z Belteki, E K Ward, J Begum-Ali, C van den Boomen, S Bölte, J Buitelaar, T Charman, E Demurie, T Falck-Ytter, S Hunnius and 11 more

Abstract readValidation Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

21 authors.

Z BeltekiFaculty of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands. z.a.belteki@uu.nl.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1619-444X
E K WardDepartment of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, England.
J Begum-AliDepartment of Psychological Sciences, Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, England.
C van den BoomenFaculty of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands.
S BölteCenter of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Department of Women's and Children's Health, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
J BuitelaarKarakter Child and Adolescent Psychiatry University Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
T CharmanDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, England.
E DemurieFaculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
T Falck-YtterCenter of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Department of Women's and Children's Health, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
S HunniusDonders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
M H JohnsonDepartment of Psychological Sciences, Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, England.
E J H JonesDepartment of Psychological Sciences, Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, England.
I OosterlingKarakter Child and Adolescent Psychiatry University Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
G PascoDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, England.
M K J PijlKarakter Child and Adolescent Psychiatry University Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
A RadkowskaFaculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
M RudlingDevelopment and Neurodiversity Lab, Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
P TomalskiInstitute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.
P WarreynFaculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
C Junge *Faculty of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands.
E Haman *Faculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.

Funding

H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions 814302Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 Joint Undertaking No 777394Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap 024.001.003National Science Centre of Poland 2012/07/B/HS6/01464Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek VI.Vidi.211.245
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Infants at elevated likelihood for or later diagnosed with autism typically have smaller vocabularies than their peers, as shown by the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL) and the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Developmental Inventory (CDI). However, the extent to which MSEL and CDI scores align remains unclear, especially across clinical and non-clinical populations. This study examined whether the concurrent validity of the MSEL and CDI differs based on autism likelihood and diagnosis. Data from 720 14-month-old infants were analysed, grouped by likelihood (elevated vs. typical) and diagnosis at 36 months (diagnosed vs. not diagnosed). Vocabulary scores were compared across both likelihood and diagnostic groups. Moderate correlations were observed between the MSEL and CDI in most groups (r

Indexed as

Autistic DisorderLearningChild DevelopmentChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansInfantMaleReproducibility of ResultsVocabularyAutismCommunicative Developmental InventoryInfantsLanguage assessmentMullen Scales of Early Learning

Identifiers

PMID39821722
PMCPMC13222192

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.