Rasch Analysis of the Emotional and Behavioral Screener

The present study examined the measurement properties of the Emotional and Behavioral Screener (EBS), a universal screening instrument which identifies students presenting with emotional and behavioral problems. The primary research questions sought to examine the degree to which the EBS item responses fit the Rasch model through evaluating fit of item responses to the Rasch model and item-measure correlations. The sample consisted of K-12 students with emotional disturbance (n = 1138) and with no identified disabilities (n = 1096). Students were rated by their teachers on the 10-item EBS. The findings suggested the EBS possesses favorable measurement properties such that most items had (1) overall good fit to the Rasch model, (2) a few items across age/gender that assess internalizing problems were found to be somewhat problematic, (3) the item hierarchy was found to align with logical and theoretical expectations, and (4) teachers endorsed the response options in a reliable and predictive manner with response categories mostly being distinguishable from one another. Overall, the results justify the interpretations and decisions made with the EBS scores.