Cross-cultural influences on the MABC-2 test for Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD): A Middle Eastern perspective

Abstract

This study examined specific aspects of the reliability and validity of age band 2 of the Movement Assessment Battery for Children – Second Edition (MABC-2, Henderson, Sugden, & Barnett, 2007) in Egypt. Eighty-nine children participated in the study (54 boys and 35 girls), age between 7 and 10.8 years (x ̅=8.8 and sd±1.2). Cronbach’s alpha for each item and item-total correlation were used to determine internal consistency; inter-rater reliability of the MABC-2 estimated using Intra-class Correlation Coefficient (ICC). Correlation coefficients between test items, subdomains, and total test scores were computed to evaluate the validity of MABC-2. Cronbach’s alpha for parents and teacher’s responses, and total test scores evaluated the level of agreement of the Arabic version of the checklist scores. The alpha value of all eight items together was moderate but acceptable (r=0.73). The correlation between each test item and the total score were moderate except for two items. The ICC of inter-rater reliability for each test items was excellent (all above 0.90) except for on item. The correlation coefficients between test items and subdomains were moderate, and the relationships between subdomains and total test scores were strong. There was a strong relationship between teachers and parents responses to the checklist. It was concluded that both the reliability and validity of age band 2 of MABC-2, were acceptable, but some adjustments are needed to improve the psychometric properties of the test for its use in Egypt. Responses to the checklist indicated that teachers were more accurate in their observations than those reported by parents.