Oppositional Defiant Disorder Test (Parent Report): The 8 Vanderbilt Items
This is a parent-report screening for oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) in children ages 6 to 12, using the 8 oppositional items from the NICHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scale word for word, plus a look at how much these behaviors affect home, school, and friendships.
Reviewed by Michael Callans, MSW 
Oppositional Defiant Disorder Test (Parent Report) is a free, confidential 14-question self-assessment, the 8 Vanderbilt ODD items, verbatim (parent report). It takes about 6 minutes, runs entirely in your browser, and gives you a plain-language score across 3 interpretation bands plus an optional in-depth report. It is an educational screening, not a diagnosis.
Frequent defiance, and how much it is actually disrupting life
Every child argues, refuses, and loses their temper sometimes. What separates typical childhood pushback from a pattern worth a closer look is how often it happens and how much it affects home, school, and friendships. This screening keeps those two questions separate.
The Vanderbilt ODD items, verbatim
The 8 oppositional and defiant items from the NICHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scale parent form, reproduced word for word: arguing, losing temper, defying rules, annoying others, blaming others, being touchy, resentment, and spite.
How often, matching the published scale
Each item is rated never, occasionally, often, or very often, the same four-point frequency scale used in the Vanderbilt clinical rating scale.
Real-world impairment, separately
Six original questions on how much these behaviors affect home routines, school, and friendships, because frequency alone does not tell you how much a pattern is actually disrupting your child's life.
| Feature | Typical free quiz | Psychology.com |
|---|---|---|
| Verbatim Vanderbilt ODD items | Rarely | Yes, all 8, word for word |
| States the published screening rule | No | Yes, 4+ often/very often items |
| Separates frequency from impairment | No | Yes, two sections |
| Explains ODD vs normal defiance | Rarely | Yes, in depth |
| Clinician-reviewed interpretation | Rarely | Yes, clinician reviewed |
| Optional in-depth personalized report | No | Yes, written to your exact scores |
| Answers stay on your device | Often tracked | Scored in your browser; we only receive anonymous completion counts unless you ask for a PDF or report |
How scoring works
Answers are scored 0–24 in total. Your result falls into one of 3 bands:
| Score | Band | What it suggests |
|---|---|---|
| 0–7 | Few oppositional signs reported | Based on your answers, your child shows few frequent oppositional or defiant behaviors right now. |
| 8–15 | Some oppositional signs reported | Based on your answers, your child shows some frequent oppositional or defiant behaviors. This is a reasonable point to start a conversation with a pediatrician. |
| 16–24 | Many oppositional signs (consider an evaluation) | Based on your answers, your child shows many frequent oppositional and defiant behaviors. Consider arranging a formal evaluation. |
Oppositional Defiant Disorder vs Normal Childhood Defiance
Testing limits, arguing over rules, and the occasional meltdown are a normal part of childhood development, especially around ages 2 to 3 and again in early adolescence. Oppositional defiant disorder describes a pattern that goes beyond ordinary pushback: frequent arguing, temper, defiance, and spite that shows up across settings, home and school, lasts at least six months, and clearly interferes with relationships or functioning, not just an occasional hard day or a reaction to one specific stressor.
The published Vanderbilt screening rule reflects this distinction directly: it counts how many of the 8 items are rated often or very often, using 4 or more as the point worth a closer look, rather than treating any single occasional behavior as a red flag. This test displays a frequency total instead of that exact clinical count, which is explained in the methodology below, but the same underlying idea applies: frequency and persistence matter more than any one difficult moment.
ODD and ADHD Often Overlap
Oppositional defiant disorder and ADHD occur together often enough that many clinicians screen for both at once. A child with untreated ADHD may argue or defy instructions partly because they genuinely did not process the request, got distracted mid-task, or acted impulsively, which can look like defiance without being purely oppositional in nature. Sorting out how much of a pattern is attention and impulse control versus oppositional behavior itself is exactly the kind of thing a full evaluation is built to untangle.
If ADHD traits, like trouble focusing, impulsivity, or restlessness, also sound familiar, the Child ADHD Test (Parent Report) or the full Vanderbilt Assessment Test can help you look at that picture alongside this one. It is common, and clinically useful, for a parent to bring results from both to the same evaluation.
What Helps: Parent Management Training Comes First
For oppositional defiant disorder, parent management training, sometimes taught through programs like Parent-Child Interaction Therapy or the Incredible Years, is the first-line, most evidence-backed treatment, not medication. These programs coach parents in specific, practical techniques: consistent responses to defiance, effective praise for cooperative behavior, and structured consequences that are predictable rather than reactive. Many parents find their own stress and reactivity drop significantly once they have concrete tools to use in the moment.
A pediatrician or child psychologist can refer you to a parent management training program in your area, and many are offered through community mental health clinics at low or no cost. Support for you as a parent is part of effective treatment here, not a side note. Managing a child with frequent, intense defiance is genuinely exhausting, and getting your own support in place makes the parenting techniques far easier to apply consistently.
Methodology & sources
The 8 items in Part 1 reproduce the oppositional and defiant items (items 19 to 26) from the NICHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scale, Parent Informant form, word for word: argues with adults, loses temper, actively defies or refuses to go along with adults' requests or rules, deliberately annoys people, blames others for his or her mistakes or misbehaviors, is touchy or easily annoyed by others, is angry or resentful, and is spiteful and wants to get even, each rewritten with a My child prefix to read as a statement. The Vanderbilt Assessment Scale is published by the National Institute for Children's Health Quality (NICHQ) and is free to use and distribute with NICHQ credited as the original source. Each item is rated never, occasionally, often, or very often, exactly matching the published response scale.
The published Vanderbilt screening rule for an ODD concern is a count of 4 or more items rated often or very often (plus an impairment item on a separate performance scale not reproduced here). This page reports two numbers side by side: a summed frequency total from 0 to 24, which includes occasional responses and is read against descriptive bands, and a separate count, computed automatically from your answers, of exactly how many of the 8 items were rated often or very often, shown against the published threshold of 4. Part 2, the 6 impairment items, is original content written for this page and is not part of the Vanderbilt instrument. This is a parent-report screening for education and reflection, not a diagnosis; a formal ODD evaluation requires a qualified clinician and evidence from more than one setting.
References
- Wolraich ML, Lambert W, Doffing MA, Bickman L, Simmons T, Worley K. Psychometric properties of the Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Parent Rating Scale in a referred population. J Pediatr Psychol. 2003;28(8):559-568.
- National Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality and American Academy of Pediatrics. NICHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scales, 1st edition (2002), free to use and distribute with NICHQ credited as source. nichq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/NICHQ-Vanderbilt-Assessment-Scales.pdf
- Steiner H, Remsing L; American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Work Group on Quality Issues. Practice parameter for the assessment and treatment of children and adolescents with oppositional defiant disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2007;46(1):126-141.
Cite this source
Psychology.com. (2026, September 23). Oppositional Defiant Disorder Test (Parent Report). Psychology.com. https://psychology.com/tests/odd
Oppositional Defiant Disorder Test (Parent Report) FAQ
What is oppositional defiant disorder (ODD)?
ODD is a childhood behavior pattern involving frequent arguing, temper, defiance of rules, and spite that lasts at least six months, shows up in more than one setting, and clearly interferes with relationships or functioning. It goes beyond the normal testing of limits most children do at times.
Is this the real Vanderbilt ODD screening rule?
The 8 items are reproduced word for word from the NICHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scale. This page displays a summed frequency total rather than the exact clinical count of often or very often responses, but that published count rule, 4 or more items rated often or very often, is explained in your results so you can apply it directly.
Is my child's behavior just normal defiance or something more?
Occasional arguing, refusing, or a meltdown is typical, especially at certain ages. What points toward ODD is frequency, six months or more, consistency across settings like home and school, and real interference with relationships or daily functioning, which is exactly what the two sections of this test are built to separate.
Does ODD overlap with ADHD?
Yes, often. A child with ADHD may appear defiant due to distraction, impulsivity, or missed instructions rather than purely oppositional intent, and the two conditions frequently co-occur. A full evaluation can help sort out how much of a pattern is attention-related versus oppositional.
Is this test a diagnosis?
No. Only a qualified professional, such as a pediatrician or child psychologist, can diagnose ODD, using evidence from more than one setting and a full clinical picture. This screening organizes what you are noticing so you can bring it to that conversation.
Is the test really confidential?
Yes. It runs entirely in your browser. Your individual answers are scored in your browser and never sent to us or linked to you or your child. No account is needed.
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