We have completed several projects that have evaluated the psychometric properties and potential utility of measures administered during the early years to both parents and children.
We examined two standardised measures which were collected during the Enhancing Social and Emotional Wellbeing in the Early Years (E-SEE) randomised trial. These measures are the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale (PSOC), a measure of a parent’s self efficacy in parenting, and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a measure of a child’s socioemotional difficulties.
We tested whether the SDQ, which was designed for children aged 2 to 4, could also work for 1-year-olds. We tested the tool using data from 505 parents but found that the questions did not reliably or accurately measure behaviour in these younger toddlers. This questionnaire would need to be rewritten and adapted specifically for babies before it can be used effectively. Ultimately, this highlights a major challenge for practitioners and researchers who still lack good, simple tools to identify early socioemotional difficulties.
We also tested the PSOC, which is used to measure how confident parents feel when caring for their babies. We examined the PSOC in 536 parents over 18 months. Whilst we discovered that the PSOC measures the interest, satisfaction, and self-efficacy constructs of parenting, we also discovered that the tool’s underlying structure was unstable and inconsistent as the children grew. Because of this, the PSOC may not be a reliable way to measure parenting competence or track how well parenting support programs are actually working. We concluded that the questionnaire needs to be updated and tested across different demographic groups before researchers and clinicians can trust it.
We have also examined the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) total score, used in England and Wales to track children’s developmental health at the end of their first school year when aged 5. By analysing data from the Born in Bradford cohort with over 10,000 children, we found that the total score on the EYFSP can successfully predict a child’s future school grades and behavioral difficulties. However, the tool showed some weaknesses in accurately measuring subtle differences between children with average abilities. We concluded that while the overall score is a reliable predictor of future success, it should be used with caution when trying to distinguish between children of average levels of ability.
The publications can be read here:
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0302771
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s41687-025-00905-1
