Nadeen L. Kaufman

Scatter Analysis of WISC-R Profiles for Learning Disabled Children with Superior Intelligence

A group that has rarely been investigated empirically, learning disabled children with superior intelligence, was the focus of this study. The WISC-R profiles of 30 “uneven gifted” children were examined to assess strengths and deficits as well as scatter. The children exhibited extremely strong skills in verbal comprehension, expression, and conceptualization, in marked contrast to relative deficiencies in an area that has been defined variously as sequencing ability and distractibility. Verbal—Performance IQ discrepancies and subtest scatter were both significantly greater than values obtained for normal children and were also substantially greater than scatter indexes for LD children with normal intelligence. In addition to the characteristic profile of intellectual skills, the group of high-IQ LD youngsters also displayed a consistent “emotional” profile.

Specific learning disabilities and difficulties in children and adolescents: Psychological assessment and evaluation

Preface Alan S. Kaufman and Nadeen L. Kaufman Part I. History and Tradition: 1. History lessons Margaret Jo Shepherd 2. The Wechsler intelligence scales Gary Groth-Marnat Part II. Alternative Cognitive Approaches to Learning Disabilities Assessment and Remediation: 3. Applications of the Woodcock-Johnson tests of cognitive ability - revised (WJ-R) to the diagnosis of learning disabilities Nancy Mather and Richard W. Woodcock 4. The Kaufman tests - K-ABC and KAIT Elizabeth O. Lichtenberger 5. Using the cognitive assessment system with learning disabled children Jack A. Naglieri 6. Application of the British Ability Scales (BAS II) and Differential Ability Scales (DAS) for the assessment of specific learning disabilities Colin D. Elliott 7. Is dynamic assessment compatible with the psychometric model? Reuven Feuerstein and Raphael S. Feuerstein 8. Multi-perspective, clinical-educational assessments of language disorders Elisabeth H. Wiig Part III. Neuropsychological Approaches to Learning Disabilities Assessment and Remediation: 9. Learning disabilities and their neurological foundations, theories, and subtypes Otfried Spreen 10. The Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Test Battery: research findings and clinical application Ralph M. Reitan and Deborah Wolfson 11. Developmental assessment of neurological function with the aid of the NEPSY Marit Korkman, Sarah L. Kemp and Ursula Kirk 12. Clinical neuropsychological assessment of child and adolescent memory with the WRAML, TOMAL, and CVLT-C Erin D. Bigler and Wayne V. Adams Part IV. Integration and Summation: 13. Assessment of specific learning disabilities in the new millennium: issues, conflicts, and controversies Alan S. Kaufman and Nadeen L. Kaufman Index.

Review of Research on Reversal Errors

This review focuses on the phenomenon of reversals: the tendency for children, especially those with reading difficulties, to make errors of orientation (“b-d”) or sequencing (“was-saw”). After a brief historical (Orton) and theoretical (Gibson) look at the phenomenon, a variety of studies on reversals is reviewed and evaluated. The first group of studies reviewed and discussed involves neurological and psychological factors associated with reversals, e.g., age, training. The second set of investigations summarizes the literature relating reversals to reading disabilities and to future reading achievement.

The impact of pictorial stimulus on written expression output of adolescents and adults

This study assessed Hooper et al.s contention that the type of pictorial stimulus affects the quality of an individuals written expression. These researchers contended that pictorial stimuli should be photographs (rather than line drawings), should have a clear protagonist, and should present a novel problem-situation that can be solved in a stepwise manner. A pictorial stimulus developed from Hooper et al.s specifications was compared to a conventional line drawing stimulus (from PIAT-R Written Expression) in its ability to evoke writing samples. Subjects comprised 50 men and women aged 13 to 46 years. It was hypothesized that the “Hooper” stimulus would yield higher scores than a conventional stimulus on items assessing structure and cohesiveness of the story, but not on items that assess writing mechanics. The results of the ANOVAs supported the hypothesis, in accordance with Hooper et al.s prediction.

Correlations between Two Short Cognitive Tests and a WISC-III Short Form Using a Sample of Adolescent Inpatients

A new short form of the WISC-III was examined with a clinical adolescent sample (N = 30), and the short form estimate of WISC-III Full Scale IQ also served as the criterion for validating two brief cognitive measures, the Kaufman Functional Academic Skills Test (K-FAST) and the K-SNAP. Data supported the brevity of the WISC-III short form and the criterion-related validity of both the K-FAST and the Kaufman Short Neuropsychological Assessment Procedure (K-SNAP).

A Horn Analysis of the Factors Measured by the WAIS-R, Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test (KAIT), and Two New Brief Cognitive Measures for Normal Adolescents and Adults.

Data obtained on 255 normal individuals, ages 16-83, were factor analyzed. Variables included subtests from the WAIS-R, KAIT, and two new brief cognitive measures (K-FAST, K-SNAP). Four factors emerged that were interpreted from Horns theory of intelligence: Crystallized (Gc), Fluid (Gf), Short-term Acquisition and Retrieval (SAR), and a blend of Broad Visualization (Gv) and Fluid. Results were interpreted in the context of previous Horn analyses of the KAIT and Wechslers scales, with particular attention paid to the question of whether the WAIS-R Performance Scale measures fluid intelligence or whether it is primarily a measure of Gv, as some researchers contend.

Social-Class Differences on the Mc Carthy Scales for Black and White Children

The relationship of social class to the cognitive and motor Indexes yielded by the McCarthy scales was explored for representative groups of black (n = 154) and white (n = 862) children aged 2½ to 8½ yr. For both racial groups, children categorized as middle class scored significantly higher than working-class youngsters on each of the six indexes. The pattern of mean Indexes for different occupational groups resembled the pattern of mean IQs found in previous studies.

K–ABC Simultaneous Processing, Das Nonverbal Reasoning, and Horn's Expanded Fluid-Crystallized Theory

Horns distinction between fluid intelligence (Gf) and visualization (Gv) was investigated with two Nonverbal Reasoning subtests from the Differential Ability Scales and three Simultaneous Processing subtests from the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children. The sample comprised a predominantly Euro-American group of 57 normal boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 12 years. Principal factor analysis yielded clear-cut Gf and Gv dimensions. The Gf factor was composed both of Differential Ability Scales and Kaufman–ABC subtests, suggesting that the construct of simultaneous processing is not merely a measure of Gv, as some researchers have hypothesized, but also measures Horns Gf fluid intelligence to a considerable extent.

Research on the McCarthy Scales and Its Implications for Assessment

This paper reviews the research on the McCarthy Scales of Childrens Abilities, which are designed to assess several areas of a childs cognitive and motor development from the age of 21/2 to 81/2 years. Pertinent research findings are considered in terms of their implications for assessment; the real possibility that McCarthys General Cognitive Index GCI is different from the IQ is explored. Other types of investigations needed to help validate the instrument and better define its clinical usefulness also are mentioned. Finally, the roles of the McCarthy in different aspects of psychoeducational diagnosis are discussed in view of present knowledge about the instrument.

Differences on Six Horn Abilities for 14 Age Groups between 15-16 and 75-94 Years.

Six abilities derived from Horns fluid (Gf) and crystallized (Gc) theory were investigated for 1,193 individuals (607 men and 586 women), aged 15-94 years and approximately representative of the U.S. population on ethnic, socioeconomic, and geographic variables. Age differences on the Horn abilities were analyzed for separate age groups across this wide age span, both with and without control for education, using multivariate analysis of variance and multiple regression analysis. Results supported Horns classification of crystallized and quantitative as maintained abilities and of fluid and broad visualization as vulnerable abilities. Short-term acquisition and retrieval, usually interpreted as vulnerable, was maintained through the 60s for the present sample. The patterns of age differences on long-term retrieval tasks were a function of the type of material to be stored.