BackgroundThe need for early intervention tools adapted to the First Nation culture is well documented. However, standards derived from First Nation communities are absent from the literature. This study examines the psychometric properties of an adaptation of a caregiver-completed screening tool, the Ages & Stages Questionnaires (ASQ), for the Mohawk population.MethodsParticipants who completed the questionnaires include 17 teachers, along with the parents of 282 children (130 girls and 152 boys) between the ages of 9 and 66 months who attend the Child and Family Center Mohawk Territory, Quebec.ResultsFor the internal consistency of the four questionnaires (36-, 42-, 48- and 54-month intervals), Cronbach’s alphas varied between .61 and .84. Five results were below 0.60: “gross motor” (Q36 and Q42), “problem solving” (Q36) and “personal-social” (Q36 and Q42). A comparison of the results shows that parents and teachers agreed in 85% of the cases concerning the referral of the child for further evaluation. Moreover, the group discussion with the parents revealed that the use of the questionnaire was appreciated and was deemed appropriate for use within the community.ConclusionThe results show that the ASQ is a screening test that may be appropriate for use with children from communities that are seemingly very different in terms of geographic, climatic and cultural backgrounds. This preliminary study with the Child and Family Center appears to support further study and the use of the ASQ with the Mohawk population.

Although most persons with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) wish to have romantic and/or sexual relationships, little is known about self-report sexuality of adolescents/young adults with ASD. In this exploratory study, 172 male and female adolescents/young adults (68 with ASD and 104 without ASD) completed an online version of the Sexual Behavior Scale-Third edition. Although many more similarities than differences were observed between the groups for views and desires about romantic relationships (e.g., wishing to have a girlfriend/boyfriend), fewer participants with ASD (mostly boys) had experience with a variety of sexual/dyadic behaviors, and approximately half of girls with ASD reported negative sexual experiences. Significantly higher rates of participants with ASD felt their knowledge about sexuality was limited and found it difficult to understand sexual education compared with typically developing (TD) participants. Significantly lower rates of participants with ASD reported that they identify to their assigned gender compared with TD participants. Multiple regressions revealed that being older at first diagnosis and possessing better knowledge about sexuality were significant predictors of both positive and negative sexual experience. This study explores strengths and challenges related with the sexual health of adolescents/young adults with ASD and implications for clinical and educational practice are discussed.

La présence d’une incapacité chez un enfant peut poser des défis importants à sa famille. Cet article traite de perceptions des parents concernant cette expérience ainsi que leurs besoins. Il s’agit d’une recherche de type qualitatif. Des entrevues individuelles semi-dirigées ont été réalisées auprès de 24 parents d’enfants présentant les incapacités suivantes : 1) incapacités intellectuelles, 2) problèmes de santé mentale, 3) incapacités visuelles, 4) incapacités auditives, 5) incapacités motrices et 6) traumatisme craniocérébral. Les entrevues ont été analysées à l’aide du logiciel Atlas.ti (Muhr, 1997). Les résultats traitent de leur appréciation des aides et services reçus et de leur expérience familiale.The presence of a child with a disability can pose important challenges within the family. This article concerns the parents’ perceptions of their life experience and their needs. This qualitative design research was realized with 24 parents of children with the following incapacities: 1) intellectual disabilities, 2) mental health problems, 3) visual impairment, 4) hearing impairment, 5) physical disabilities, and 6) traumatic brain injury. The semi-directed individual interviews were analyzed with the software ATLAS.ti (Muhr, 1997). The results present informations about their appreciation of the assistances and services they received and their family life experience

Le stress à l'école Volume 43, numéro 2, automne 2015 URI : id.erudit.org/iderudit/1034490ar