Étude des problèmes comportementaux et émotionnels chez l'adolescent : faisabilité et validité de l'approche ESM

Despite the growing application of the ambulatory computerised method to study the behaviour or problems of adolescents, numerous results concerning the quality of the data remain to be explored further. The present study examined the feasibility and validity of a computerised ambulatory monitoring protocol among a sample of 131 young French adults with difficulties in studying at school (49%) or in educational achievement (51%). The students replied to electronic interviews several times a day over a period of 7 days. The adolescents completed a mean of more than 70% of the interviews, but those with difficulties completed less than those of their peers. The results show an effect of fatigue and at the same time a reactive effect, which suggests that the sample of adolescents might be more vulnerable to the length or the intensity of the investigation than adults. Nevertheless, the relationship between the variables measured with the electronic interviews corresponds to the associations expected and a converging validity was found between the scores based on laboratory measurements and similar concepts during every day life.