TY - JOUR
T1 - Prevalence of low scores in children and adolescents on the test of verbal conceptualization and fluency
AU - Brooks, Brian L.
AU - Iverson, Grant L.
AU - Koushik, Nikhil S.
AU - Mazur-Mosiewicz, Anya
AU - Horton, Arthur Mac Neill
AU - Reynolds, Cecil R.
N1 - Funding Information:
Dr. Brooks receives funding from Psychological Assessment Resources Inc. and in-kind research support from the CNS Vital Signs test publishing company. Dr. Iverson has received past research funding and support from Psychological Assessment Resources Inc., other test publishing companies, and the pharmaceutical industry for studies relating to the reliability, validity, and accuracy of neuropsychological tests. Drs. Koushik and Mazur-Mosiewicz report no perceived or actual conflicts of interest related to this article. Dr. Horton and Dr. Reynolds are developers of the Test of Verbal Conceptualization and Fluency. Address correspondence to Brian L. Brooks, Ph.D., Neurosciences Program, Alberta Children’s Hospital, 2888 Shaganappi Trail NW, Calgary, AB T3B 6A8, Canada. E-mail: [email protected]
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - It is important to consider the prevalence of low scores when administering a battery of psychological tests. Understanding the prevalence of low scores is important for minimizing false-positive diagnoses of cognitive deficits in clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to expand the literature on base rates for use in children and adolescents. Participants were 408 healthy children and adolescents (Mage = 13.1 years, SD = 3.7) and 139 children and adolescents (Mage = 12.4 years, SD = 3.1) diagnosed with a medical, neurological, or learning condition. All participants were administered the Test of Verbal Conceptualization and Fluency (TVCF; Reynolds & Horton, 2006). The clinical sample performed significantly lower compared with the healthy control participants on three of the five TVCF scores. When all scores were considered simultaneously, 38% of healthy children obtained one or more scores below the 16th percentile and 15% had one or more scores in the 5th percentile or lower. By comparison, significantly higher proportions of children in the clinical sample had low scores below each of the five cutoffs (i.e., 63% had one or more test scores below the 16th percentile and 37% had one or more scores in the 5th percentile or lower). Our findings illustrate the importance of considering the prevalence of low TVCF scores in everyday clinical practice with children and adolescents.
AB - It is important to consider the prevalence of low scores when administering a battery of psychological tests. Understanding the prevalence of low scores is important for minimizing false-positive diagnoses of cognitive deficits in clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to expand the literature on base rates for use in children and adolescents. Participants were 408 healthy children and adolescents (Mage = 13.1 years, SD = 3.7) and 139 children and adolescents (Mage = 12.4 years, SD = 3.1) diagnosed with a medical, neurological, or learning condition. All participants were administered the Test of Verbal Conceptualization and Fluency (TVCF; Reynolds & Horton, 2006). The clinical sample performed significantly lower compared with the healthy control participants on three of the five TVCF scores. When all scores were considered simultaneously, 38% of healthy children obtained one or more scores below the 16th percentile and 15% had one or more scores in the 5th percentile or lower. By comparison, significantly higher proportions of children in the clinical sample had low scores below each of the five cutoffs (i.e., 63% had one or more test scores below the 16th percentile and 37% had one or more scores in the 5th percentile or lower). Our findings illustrate the importance of considering the prevalence of low TVCF scores in everyday clinical practice with children and adolescents.
KW - Assessment
KW - Base rates
KW - Executive functioning
KW - Low scores
KW - Misdiagnosis
KW - Multivariate
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84883261503&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/21622965.2012.742792
DO - 10.1080/21622965.2012.742792
M3 - Article
C2 - 23427779
AN - SCOPUS:84883261503
SN - 2162-2965
VL - 2
SP - 70
EP - 77
JO - Applied Neuropsychology: Child
JF - Applied Neuropsychology: Child
IS - 1
ER -