Autism is a complex health condition with a global prevalence of 1%, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The deficits caused by autism in social communication, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities, can significantly impact an individual's functioning. Although numerous outcome measures exist, Brazil currently lacks a functioning assessment tool for this population that is grounded in the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF), as recommended by the WHO.

This study aimed to assess the content validity of TEA-CIFuncionalidade, an innovative Brazilian tool designed to evaluate the functioning of children and youth with autism based on the ICF from the perspective of parents.

All the methodological processes were conducted based on the Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurements Instruments (COSMIN). The content validity analysis of TEA-CIFuncionalidade was conducted in two stages. In the first stage, an Expert Committee consisting of five professionals with expertise in therapies for children and youth with atypical neurodevelopment, and/or professionals experienced in psychometrics, assessed the tool’s relevance, comprehensiveness, and comprehensibility using a standardized questionnaire distributed via Google Forms. In the second stage, 30 parents of children and youth with autism participated in personal interviews to evaluate these same aspects of the tool. For the statistical analyses the Content Validity Coefficient was calculated for each evaluated item, resulting in a total of Content Validity Coefficient (CtVC) for relevance, comprehensiveness, and comprehensibility.

100% of the judges in the Expertise Committee had experience with the ICF, and 50% had five or more years of experience with autism. The Content Validity Coefficient values from the Expertise Committee were satisfactory for relevance (CtVC = 0,98), comprehensiveness (CtVC = 0,95) and comprehensibility (CtVC = 0,93). The target population consisted of 30 parents of autistic children and youth diagnosed according to the ICD-10, aged between 2 and 18 years. All participants were female and received care from the private healthcare sector in São Paulo. The Content Validity Coefficient values from the target population were satisfactory for relevance (CtVC = 0,98), comprehensiveness (CtVC = 0,99) and comprehensibility (CtVC = 0,96).

TEA-CIFuncionalidade demonstrated acceptable Content Validity values according to the Expertise Committee and target population. Further analyses of the remaining measurement properties proposed by COSMIN are still required.

This study confirms that TEA-CIFuncionalidade is a viable tool for the standardized assessment of functioning in Brazilian children and youth with autism, grounded in the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health.