Screening tests and standardized assessments used to identify and characterize developmental delays.

The appropriate choice, application, and interpretation of functional assessments of children with problems of development are often challenging issues for clinicians. The purposes of this communication are to share with clinicians an understanding of the structure and properties of functional assessment measures; to offer an orientation to the application of such measures to help evaluate a child's developmental status; and to suggest issues that are important to consider in the interpretation of the findings, and how these might be shared with parents. Numerous references are cited for readers who wish to read more about measures in general and about specific clinical assessment tools that are most useful in applied child development.