Assessing social and emotional learning of children in India: Perspectives from parents and teachers

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is an essential component of early childhood development. However, low- and middle-income countries often lack appropriate assessment tools. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is well-suited for use in a developing country like India due to its low cost, informant-report format, and robust psychometric properties. Despite its utility, research on the application of the SDQ in India is limited, particularly regarding the correspondence between parents' and teachers' reports. Understanding this correspondence is crucial for equipping clinicians and educators to identify children requiring early intervention confidently. This study aimed to (1) compare parents' SDQ responses for children with Typical Development (TD) and Developmental Disabilities (DD), (2) compare teachers' SDQ responses for these groups, and (3) examine parent-teacher agreement in reporting SEL for children with TD and DD. Participants included parents and teachers of 407 children with TD and 59 children with DD, aged 4-8 years, from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds in Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and the National Capital Region of India. Results revealed that parents of children with TD reported fewer concerns across all SDQ scales-Emotional Symptoms, Conduct Problems, Hyperactivity/Inattention, Peer Relationship Problems, and Prosocial Behaviour-than parents of children with DD. Teachers' responses mirrored this pattern. However, parents of children with TD reported more concerns than teachers on three scales, while parents of children with DD consistently reported more concerns than teachers across all scales. These findings demonstrated the usefulness of taking a multi-informant approach to assessing children's SEL.