Intelligibility in Context Scale: cross-linguistic use, validity, and reliability

ABSTRACT

The Intelligibility in Context Scale (ICS) is a free parent-report screening tool that has been translated into over 60 languages. To date, there is cross-linguistic evidence regarding its validity and reliability reported in 18 studies of over 4235 children from 14 countries (Australia, Croatia, Fiji, Germany, Hong Kong SAR China, Italy, Korea, Jamaica, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, Viet Nam) speaking 14 languages (Cantonese, Croatian, Dutch, English, Fijian (Standard or dialects), Fiji-Hindi, German, Italian, Jamaican Creole, Korean, Portuguese, Slovenian, Swedish, Vietnamese). Cross-linguistic research provides support for the use of the ICS as a primary screening tool for young children to identify which children require additional assessment. Additional research has been undertaken to determine its relevance during assessment and intervention as a descriptive tool and outcome measure for children (and some adults) with speech sound disorders, cleft lip and palate, hearing loss, and autism spectrum disorder. The review concludes with an exploration of cross-linguistic possibilities of the ICS within implementation science.

KEYWORDS:

• Intelligibility in Context Scale
• intelligibility
• cross-linguistic
• screening
• outcome measure
• validity
• reliability

Acknowledgments

Professor Linda J. Harrison and A/Professor Jane McCormack who are co-authors of the ICS, Dr Cen (Audrey) Wang who assisted with compiling data for the paper, and other colleagues across the world who have translated, used, and conducted research with the ICS.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

ORCID

Sharynne McLeod http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7279-7851

Notes

1 The ICS is licenced under Creative Commons so users ‘are free to share … with appropriate attribution and acknowledgment of the source … may not use this work for commercial purposes, … [and] may not alter, transform, or build upon this work’.

2 The study by Sprunt and Marella (2018) reported lower scores for the children with atypical speech since they removed the middle group of participants from their analysis (Table 1).

Additional information

Funding

This work was financial supported by the Australian Research Council [grant number DP180102848].