title: Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse Questionnaire (CECA.Q). Validation of a screening instrument for childhood adversity in clinical populations.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Interview measures for investigating adverse childhood experiences, such as the Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse (CECA) instrument, are comprehensive and can be lengthy and time-consuming. A questionnaire version of the CECA (CECA.Q) has been developed which could allow for screening of individuals in research settings. This would enable researchers to identify individuals with adverse early experiences who might benefit from an in-depth interview. This paper aims to validate the CECA.Q against the CECA interview in a clinical population.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and eight patients attending an affective disorders service were assessed using both the CECA interview and questionnaire measures. A follow-up sample was recruited 3 years later and sent the questionnaire. The questionnaire was also compared with the established Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Agreement between ratings on the interview and questionnaire were high. Scales measuring antipathy and neglect also correlated highly with the PBI. The follow-up sample revealed the questionnaire to have a high degree of reliability over a long period of time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The CECA.Q appears to be a reliable and valid measure which can be used in research on clinical populations to screen for individuals who have experienced severe adversity in childhood.
authors.affiliation: Health Services Research Department, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny park, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AF, UK.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bifulco
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Checkley
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008131:London; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019964:Mood Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D011581:Psychological Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results