The Modified- Classroom ObservationScheduletoMeasureIntenticnaCommunication( M-COSMIC): EvaluationofReliabilityandValidity

Modified COSMIC 8

validity of the new measure was demonstrated with a sub-sample of 28 children who
were seen for ADOS-G assessment 15 months after their initial COSMIC evaluation
(Pasco et al., 2008).

Although proving valid as a measure of social communication skills for children with
ASD and useful for intervention outcome measurement (Howlin et al. 2007), the COSMIC
(Pasco et al., 2008) was initially designed for use with low-functioning (mostly non-verbal)
children in special educational settings. The current study undertook to revise the COSMIC to
permit its use in evaluating the social-communication in children with ASD with more varied
levels of functioning and language ability. Development of the Modified (M)-COSMIC is
described, with evaluation of reliability and validity reported for the sample of verbally
heterogeneous children with ASD.

4. Method

4.1 Development of the Modified - Classroom Observation Schedule to Measure Intentional
Communication (M-COSMIC)

Revision of the COSMIC (approved by the Central Manchester Multicentre
Research Ethics Committee 05/Q1407/311) was undertaken to increase its utility by
providing a coding scheme and structure likely to elicit various types of form and
function of social communication act. The original COSMIC sampled social
communication across a variety of classroom activities (which were allowed to vary
naturally across participants) as well as during the more structured setting of snack time.
Coded data were then combined across available settings for the final analysis. Whilst
standard across all participants, the snack setting arguably elicits lower-level
instrumental/imperative communicative functions (i.e., requests and refusals), providing

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