The Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire and Movement Assessment Battery for Children as a Diagnostic Method in Australian Children

In Brief Purpose: Early, accurate diagnosis of children with developmental coordination disorder is crucial to enable effective intervention. This study examined a diagnostic method in an Australian school population. Methods: In a two-step process, the Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire (DCDQ) was distributed to parents of 460 children. Using the DCDQ results, children suspected of having developmental coordination disorder, and age and sex matched control children, attended a physical assessment [Movement Assessment Battery for Children (M-ABC)]. Results: Fifty-seven children completed M-ABC assessments. The internal consistency of the DCDQ was high (alpha 0.88), but the M-ABC (alpha 0.75) failed to reach the specified cut-off. Factor analysis revealed discrepancies in the proposed subtest structures. Sensitivity and specificity using the original cut-off scores was somewhat low, cluster analysis identified alternative cut-off scores. Conclusions: The DCDQ is reliable and valid; however the ability of the combination of these two tests to identify children was only fair. After investigating combined use of the DCDQ and the M-ABC in Australian children, the authors recommend further investigations be conducted before using this combination of tests to screen for Developmental Coordination Disorder.