PSC-35
ValidatedPediatric Symptom Checklist – 35 items (PSC, parent report)
4 – 16 yearsParent~5 min37 questions
Emotional and physical health go together in children. Because parents are often the first to notice a problem with their child’s behavior, emotions or learning, you may help your child get the best care possible by answering these questions. Please mark under the heading that best fits your child.
Child’s age
Report details · optional
Shown on the report and stored with the screening record. Use initials or a code, not full names.
Answers, results and report details are recorded by OpenScreener to monitor and improve the service. Privacy
About this screener — evidence, source, alternatives
The original Pediatric Symptom Checklist: 35 brief statements about a child’s emotions, behaviour, attention, school functioning and physical complaints, each rated never, sometimes or often. It is a broad first sweep for psychosocial problems in primary care; the PSC-17 short form is derived from it.
Evidence · validated
A total of 28 or more (ages 6–16) or 24 or more (ages 4–5) indicates psychosocial impairment (Jellinek et al., 1988; Little et al., 1994; Pagano et al., 1996). Per the Bright Futures instructions, about two of three positive screens have moderate-to-serious impairment and negative screens are about 95% accurate. Validated in large US primary-care samples and many translations.
Free alternative to
- Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL/ASEBA) · ASEBA
Paid broad-band behaviour rating; the PSC is the free brief screen used in its place in primary care. - Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) · Youthinmind
Free on paper, but electronic versions are restricted by the rights holder.
Source & licence
Jellinek MS, Murphy JM, Robinson J, et al. Pediatric Symptom Checklist: screening school-age children for psychosocial dysfunction. J Pediatr. 1988;112(2):201–209. Little M, Murphy JM, Jellinek MS, et al. Screening 4- and 5-year-old children for psychosocial dysfunction: a preliminary study with the Pediatric Symptom Checklist. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 1994;15:191–197. © 1988 M.S. Jellinek and J.M. Murphy, Massachusetts General Hospital.
Licence: Free to use — Massachusetts General Hospital distributes the forms for free download
Scoring rules and cut-offs are from the Bright Futures PSC instructions for use (brightfutures.org). Reproduced with attribution; rights holders can contact us to correct or remove.
Official source ↗