Reliability and validity of the children's interview for psychiatric syndromes--parent version in autism spectrum disorders.

The Children's Interview for Psychiatric Syndromes-Parent Version (P-ChIPS) is a structured psychiatric interview designed to assess the presence of psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents. This study examined the reliability and validity of the P-ChIPS in 61 youngsters (6- to 17-years-old) with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Reliability analyses were conducted according to level of functioning and language level. Results indicated that interrater reliability values were largely in the good to excellent range. Concordance between the P-ChIPS and the Child and Adolescent Symptoms Inventory was fair for the majority of disorders. Percent overall agreement for most disorders was good, lending support to the validity of the P-ChIPS. The results of this study suggest that the P-ChIPS is appropriate for this population.