Teachers' and parents' ratings of children's social skills: A closer look at cross-informant agreements through an item analysis protocol

Assessment of children's social behavior was investigated with use of standardized rating scale information (Social Skills Rating System [SSRS], Gresham & Elliott, 1990) and an item analysis protocol (IAP) to provide a rich combination of assessment information. This combined research methodology was investigated by examining the relationships among 42 mother and father pairs, 24 teachers' SSRS ratings, and raters' behavior and situation item descriptions of 42 kindergarten through fourth-grade students. Mothers' and fathers' SSRS Social Skills frequency and importance ratings for their children were correlated moderately, with weaker correlations found between mothers' and teachers' frequency ratings and father's and teacher's frequency ratings. The number of behavioral and situational descriptions provided by mothers, fathers, and teachers were significantly different. Mothers' and fathers' IAP response similarity was greater than mothers' and teachers' responses or fathers' and teachers' responses. These results are discussed within a situation-specificity context, and implications are noted for multisource assessment of children's social behavior.