THE CHILD-BEHAVIOR SCALE - A TEACHER-REPORT MEASURE OF YOUNG CHILDRENS AGGRESSIVE, WITHDRAWN, AND PROSOCIAL BEHAVIORS

Few instruments provide reliable, valid data on peer-behavioral indica tors of risk and competence in young children. The authors developed a teacher-report measure of young children's behavior with peers at sch ool-the Child Behavior Scale (CBS)-and evaluated its reliability and v alidity. Data were gathered on 2 cohorts (n = 206 per cohort) of 5- to 6-year-old children; teachers rated children on Aggressive With Peers , Prosocial With Peers, Asocial With Peers, Excluded by Peers, Anxious -Fearful, and Hyperactive-Distractible subscales twice during the scho ol year. Scores were internally consistent, distinct, and relatively s table over time. The validation paradigm produced a network of correla tions that was, overall, consistent with the hypothesized conceptual s tructure of the CBS. These findings replicated across cohorts and prov ide sufficient evidence of the reliability and validity of the CBS to recommend its use for behavioral assessment with young children.