COMPUTERIZED INTERVIEWS AS A METHOD OF ASSESSING PSYCHOPATHOLOGY IN CHILDREN

A computerized version of the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Ad olescents-Revised (DICA-R) has been developed. There are three version s of the interview, one for children aged 6 to 12, one for adolescents aged 13 to 18, and one for parents of children aged 6 to 18. Acceptab ility and reliability studies of the child and adolescent versions wer e performed on 93 subjects. The results show that children of all ages enjoyed the computer, and most were able to complete the interview wi th very little help. Reasonable reliability was found for both age gro ups despite difficulty with certain diagnostic criteria. (C) 1995 by W .B. Saunders Company