The Linguistic and Conceptual Equivalence of Conner’s Revised Scales When Applied on a Sudanese Sample

Abstract

This study investigates the Linguistic and Conceptual equivalence of Conner’s Revised Scales when applied on a Sudanese sample. Sudanese parents and teachers completed behavior-rating scales on a stratified sample of 200 children. These instruments were based on Conner’s parent -48 and teacher-28 questionnaires. Following a reliable translation into Sudanese Arabic the test-retest reliability of the items and the internal consistency of the original Conner’s' revised scales were explored. The associations between scale scores and between parents and teachers scores were also examined. Both instruments displayed good reliability and the original Conners scales had satisfactory internal consistency. The inter-correlation suggested that the scales behaved in similar ways to those used in the original studies in the US. As far as linguistic and conceptual equivalence with previous studies in different cultures was concerned, it appeared that the Sudanese raters' views of problems mirrored their western counterparts. The practical and theoretical implications of these results are discussed in terms of their benefits to child mental health practitioners in the Sudan.