# SEAM

##

## An in-depth approach to social-emotional development.

The Social-Emotional Assessment/Evaluation Measure (SEAM™) is an assessment that focuses exclusively on social-emotional and behavioral development in young children—and provides meaningful insights to caregivers and families. It provides in-depth information that can prevent problems by building positive partnerships with families and optimizing positive parent–child interactions in the first years of life.

See how.

### An effective and comprehensive approach to social-emotional assessment.

With this in-depth, easy-to-use tool, social-emotional competence and development can be reliably assessed and monitored in infants, toddlers, and preschoolers at risk for delays or challenges. An ideal follow-up to screeners such as [ASQ **®**:SE-2](https://agesandstages.com/products-pricing/asqse-2/ "ASQ:SE-2"), the two-part SEAM™ assessment reveals detailed qualitative information on children’s social-emotional competence— and identifies their caregivers’ strengths and areas of need. Easy to learn and implement, SEAM can be used by a wide variety of early childhood professionals, including those with little or no training in mental health or behavioral interventions.

SEAM helps professionals to:

- support development of important social-emotional skills in order to minimize challenging behaviors
- build strong, proactive partnerships with families
- promote positive parent–child interactions in the critical first years of life
- assist with choosing developmentally appropriate goals and intervention activities
- monitor child progress toward social-emotional goals

SEAM is a two-part assessment available in English and Spanish; see [how it works](https://agesandstages.com/products-pricing/seam/#silk-tabs-0-2).

#### View the _Using the SEAM with Young Children_ webcast, presented by SEAM developers Jane Squires, Ph.D., and Misti Waddell, M.S.

**[Watch the SEAM webcast](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlp68FHK67Y)**

[SEAM, Research Edition](http://products.brookespublishing.com/Social-Emotional-AssessmentEvaluation-Measure-SEAM-Research-Edition-P717.aspx)

User’s Guide, plus CD-ROM with master forms in English and Spanish

**$52.00** • Stock Number: 72803 • 2014 • ISBN 978-1-59857-280-3

### SEAM: How it works.

SEAM is a two-part assessment: SEAM child assessment and SEAM Family Profile.

##### SEAM Child Assessment

This assessment includes three intervals with different developmental ranges:

- **Infant**(2–18 months)
- **Toddler**(18–36 months)
- **Preschool**(36–66 months)

Each interval assesses 10 child benchmarks critical to social-emotional competence, including empathy, adaptive skills, self-image, emotional responses, and healthy interactions with others.

SEAM is flexible enough to meet your specific needs—parents/caregivers can complete it independently, or it can be conducted jointly with healthcare providers if desired. The SEAM system also includes _SEAM with Ages_, an alternate version of the tool annotated with a helpful list of age ranges for each item. This version makes it easy to give caregivers general guidance on how social-emotional skills typically develop and where their child’s development fits on the continuum.

**[See a sample SEAM Form](https://agesandstages.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/SEAM-Main-Form-Preschool.pdf)**

##### SEAM Family Profile

The Family Profile assesses parent and caregiver strengths and helps identify areas in which they need more supports and resources to foster their child’s social-emotional skills. Like the main SEAM, the Family Profile assessment includes three intervals—Infant, Toddler, and Preschool. Each interval measures four benchmarks key to a nurturing home environment: responding to needs, providing activities and play, providing predictable routines and an appropriate environment, and ensuring home safety.

**[See a sample Family Profile form](http://archive.brookespublishing.com/documents/SEAM-Family-Profile-Preschool.pdf)**

#### View the developers’ SEAM poster from the 2014 Zero to Three National Training Institute

**[See the SEAM Poster](https://agesandstages.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Zero-to-Three-2014-SEAM-Poster.pdf "New Tool for Social-Emotional Assessment Conference Poster")**

#### View a presentation on SEAM and ASQ:SE from the 2014 NAEYC conference

**[See the Presentation](https://agesandstages.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/ASQ_SE-SEAM-Tiered-Model_NAEYC-2014.pdf)**

The Social-Emotional Assessment/Evaluation Measure (SEAM) is an assessment tool for measuring children’s social-emotional development and parenting competence.

SEAM was developed by some of the key developers and trainers for the Ages & Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional, Second Edition (ASQ:SE-2) screener: Jane Squires, Ph.D., Diane Bricker, Ph.D., Misti Waddell, M.S., Kristin Funk, M.A., LCSW, Jantina Clifford, Ph.D., and Robert Hoselton.

2–66 months

The SEAM Tool – includes three intervals with different developmental ranges: Infant (2–18 months), Toddler (18–36 months), and Preschool (36–66 months) and helps identify a child’s strengths, concerns for the family that need monitoring, and agreed-on focus areas

The SEAM Family Profile – also has three developmental intervals and assesses parent and caregiver strengths and helps identify areas in which they need more supports and resources to foster their child’s social-emotional skills

(The SEAM system also includes SEAM with Ages, an alternate version of the tool annotated with a helpful list of age ranges for each item.)

For each interval, the Tool assesses 10 child benchmarks critical to social-emotional competence:

01. Child participates in healthy interactions
02. Child expresses a range of emotions
03. Child regulates social-emotional responses
04. Child begins to show empathy for others
05. Child attends to and engages with others
06. Child explores hands and feet and surroundings (for infants)/demonstrates independence (for toddlers/preschoolers)
07. Child displays a positive self-image
08. Child regulates activity level
09. Child cooperates with daily routines and requests
10. Child shows a range of adaptive skills

The Family Profile also measures four benchmarks key to a nurturing home environment for each interval:

1. responding to needs
2. providing activities and play
3. providing predictable routines and an appropriate environment, and
4. ensuring home safety

In early childhood programs, homes, or other settings where children are served

Early interventionists, early childhood teachers, Head Start & Early Head Start staff, home visitors, parent educators, and mental health professionals

15–30 minutes (SEAM/SEAM with Ages)

10–15 minutes (Family Profile)

English and Spanish (both are included on the CD-ROM)

Yes, SEAM has been researched with 2,200 children from 49 U.S. states and Canada.

Qualitative data from the SEAM and Family Profile can be used to determine areas for greater intervention; answers can be [converted to numerical values](https://agesandstages.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/SEAM-Guidelines-for-Using-Numerical-Scores.pdf) for progress monitoring.

#### Hear from the SEAM developers why it’s important to measure social-emotional development.

**[Read the Interview](https://agesandstages.com/resource/introducing-seam-author-qa/ "Introducing SEAM: Author Q&A")**

### Research and validity specifics for SEAM

To confirm the utility and efficacy of SEAM, intensive research has been performed—details can be viewed below.

|     |     |
| --- | --- |
| Research sample | 2,200 children from 49 U.S. states and Canada |
| Inter-rater reliability (SEAM and SEAM with Ages) | Infant: 0.776  p < .01<br>Toddler: 0.752<br>Preschool: No data |
| Test-retest reliability (SEAM and SEAM with Ages) | Infant: 0.987  p < .01<br>Toddler: 0.968  p < .01<br>Preschool: 0.989  p < .01 |
| Concurrent Validity (SEAM and SEAM with Ages) | Infant:<br>.754\*\* with DECA-IT<br>.628\*\* with ITSEA Compliance, -.415\* with ITSEA Negative Emotion, .651\*\* with ITSEA ProSocial<br>-.557\*\* with ASQ:SEToddler:<br>.564\*\* with ITSEA Compliance, -.261\*\* with ITSEA Negative Emotion, .652\*\* with ITSEA ProSocial<br>-.516\*\* with ASQ:SEPreschool:<br>-.810\*\* with ASQ:SE\* p < .05    \*\* p < .01 |
| Utility (SEAM and SEAM with Ages) | Parents (sample of 434)<br>- 93% felt SEAM included appropriate and useful questions<br>- 56% were alerted to new child skills as a result of completing the SEAM<br>Practitioners (sample of 35)<br>- 92% agree that completing SEAM gave meaningful information about children |

- Infant: 0.776  p < .01

Toddler: 0.752

Preschool: No data

- Infant: 0.987  p < .01

Toddler: 0.968  p < .01

Preschool: 0.989  p < .01

-  Infant:

.754\*\* with DECA-IT

.628\*\* with ITSEA Compliance, -.415\* with ITSEA Negative Emotion, .651\*\* with ITSEA ProSocial

-.557\*\* with ASQ:SEToddler:

.564\*\* with ITSEA Compliance, -.261\*\* with ITSEA Negative Emotion, .652\*\* with ITSEA ProSocial

-.516\*\* with ASQ:SEPreschool:

-.810\*\* with ASQ:SE\* p < .05    \*\* p < .01

- Parents (sample of 434)

- 93% felt SEAM included appropriate and useful questions
  - 56% were alerted to new child skills as a result of completing the SEAM

Practitioners (sample of 35)

- 92% agree that completing SEAM gave meaningful information about children

#### For more technical details, view SEAM’s technical report.

**[Read more](https://agesandstages.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/SEAM-technical-appendix.pdf "SEAM Technical Report")**

-

#### What ASQ Users are Saying

“ **ASQ-3 has helped make our staff and our families more aware of developmentally appropriate growth and development.** The resources that come with the ASQ-3 have been instrumental for parents to provide school readiness activities at home and to understand the objectives that we cover in our plans.”

Jessica Trail, Head of Faculty & Administration, The Young School

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