Adolescent participation characteristics: Development and initial psychometric properties of the adolescents participation questionnaire

Background: Adolescents’ participation in daily activities is linked to positive effects, including improved academic performance, reduced school dropout and delinquency rates, increased social engagement, and influences well-being. Conversely, limited participation is associated with negative consequences, such as limited learning, behavioural problems, lower self-esteem and higher rates of substance use, emotional difficulties. Despite this, there is a lack of a comprehensive tools designed specifically for adolescents, which encompass both objective and subjective dimensions of participation across contexts. Aim: To report on the development and initial psychometric properties of the Adolescents Participation Questionnaire (APQ). Methods: Three hundred and seventy-nine typically achieving students and 103 underachieving students filled-out the APQ. Two expert panels evaluated its content validity by using questionnaires and a specification table. Results: I-CVI and S-CVI were acceptable to excellent. The multi-rater linear weighted kappa statistic was good to excellent. Reliability estimation was acceptable for the entire questionnaire and for each context separately (α = 0.61–0.75). Test-retest reliability for each scale and context separately demonstrated medium to excellent reliability (ICC = 0.42–0.92). Construct validity was established by significant differences found between two known groups. Conclusions/significance: The APQ is a suitable tool for assessing adolescents’ participation. Further studies are necessary to expand the established psychometric properties.