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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2023 Apr 25.
Published in final edited form as: Behav Ther. 2019 Sep 10;51(2):294–309. doi: 10.1016/j.beth.2019.07.008

FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 1

Illustration of the Decision Tree for scoring parental responses in the Early Childhood Irritability-Related Impairment Interview (E-CRI). General Decision Tree: 1. Starting Probe: Please tell us about ways in which… This question looks to the general picture and how the behaviors/moods can affect the situation and people in it. The probe allows the parent to respond without thinking about answering a specific question; they are allowed to start the conversation however they see fit. It gives us clues as to what to focus on in the directed questions. 2. Behavior/Mood Specific Probes: Start with general questions about whether outbursts occur in the particular context, then delve into the specifics of what happens, how often, how long, and how intense, as well as who is it affecting and what is the transition out of the outburst like. Extra detail is necessary when a situation seems vague or the parent is not giving enough detail for you to be able to confidently score. Some questions could include asking how the child can calm down from outbursts/moods, how these affect the others, whether the child has varying levels of outbursts/moods, whether the parent is able to see the outbursts/moods coming, or whether these seem to occur out of nowhere or for no reason. 3. Summarizing Questions: All questions get asked regardless of how the parent responds to the starting probe or the specific questions about behavior/mood, as this provides a fuller picture and offers different situations of which parents may not have thought about. If the parent answers yes to any of the general questions, ask about frequency and for more context (when/how it affects, which person, etc.). These questions might lead you back to the general outburst/mood sections for more situations/detail. SCORING: Scoring factors include frequency, intensity, length of time, pervasiveness, and disruptiveness. All these factors are taken into consideration when scoring. The context and pervasiveness are very important for determining severity of outbursts/moods. Frequency, intensity, and length of time are key points to determining the disruptiveness of the outbursts/moods. Also, keep the normative expressions of anger/frustration in mind when scoring. A child who has a bad mood once a week when tired is different from a child who has a bad mood three to four times per week when told to go to bed.