Establishing the concurrent validity of the Clinical Outcome in Routine Evaluation-Learning Disabilities scale

Abstract

Purpose

Individuals with an intellectual disability (ID) develop mental health difficulties at similar rates to individuals in the general population. Using Patient Reported Outcome Measures can help track deterioration and improve the outcomes of individuals seeking help for their difficulties. The Clinical Outcome in Routine Evaluation-Learning Disabilities (CORE-LD) is a multi-trait measure of psychological distress which has shown moderate test-rest reliability. However, the CORE-LD is yet to be validated for the population it was designed for. Therefore the purpose of this paper is to establish the concurrent validity of the CORE-LD in a population of individuals with a diagnosis of mild–moderate ID.

Design/methodology/approach

Participants with a diagnosis of mild–moderate ID, as well as other co-morbidities, were recruited from two UK inpatient hospitals and asked to complete the CORE-LD and its general population counterpart the Clinical Outcome in Routine Evaluation-Outcome Measure (CORE-OM).

Findings

Statistically significant differences were found regarding the CORE-LD across gender, with females scoring higher on the CORE-LD than males. There was no significant difference between security levels. The overall mean scores on each measure were moderately correlated. The data from this analysis suggest a significant positive correlation (r_s=0.68).

Originality/value

This initial study’s findings have demonstrated the CORE-LD may have concurrent validity, and further replication studies in larger and more diverse samples are needed.

Citation

Briscoe, H., Ashworth, S. and Shelton, L. (2019), "Establishing the concurrent validity of the Clinical Outcome in Routine Evaluation-Learning Disabilities scale", Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, Vol. 13 No. 6, pp. 237-244. https://doi.org/10.1108/AMHID-02-2019-0005