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Construct validity of the K-ABC for Cantonese, English and Punjabi speaking Canadians

University of British Columbia

The purpose of this study was to examine the construct validity of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) for use with Cantonese, English, and Punjabi speaking Canadians. The K-ABC is a relatively new, individually administered test of intelligence and achievement. The intelligence scale is being promoted as measuring a mental processing dichotomy (Sequential/Simultaneous). A sample of 210 students (70 in each of the three groups) between the ages of 8 years, 1 month and 10 years, 5 months volunteered to participate in the study. All were enrolled in grade 3 classes (n = 34) in a large urban city in Western Canada. The subjects (sexes equally represented within each of the three groups) were all Canadian born, attended English schools, were not Native Indians, and had not been previously diagnosed as having emotional, mental, physical or sensory handicaps. Each student was administered the K-ABC and WISC-R. Information on their biodemographic characteristics was collected from their parents and teachers. Specifically, the parents completed a questionnaire addressing such issues as the language(s) spoken in the home, their birth place, family size, and socioeconomic status. Teachers were required to rate the students' English fluency and learning style. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses were performed on the K-ABC, for each group, to investigate its internal structure. Pearson's correlation coefficients and dependent t test comparisons were performed to identify the relationship between the K-ABC and the WISC-R. The differences found among the groups on the two cognitive tests and the significant discrepancies found between each test for specific individuals were explained in relation to group and individual biodemographic characteristics. The scales on both tests were found to be reliable measures for each group. The subtest and scale means on the K-ABC and WISC-R differed significantly among the groups. Factor Analyses on the K-ABC indicated the English and Punjabi data as supporting the theoretical underpinnings (Sequential Processing and Simultanous Processing) of the K-ABC while the Cantonese data did not. High correlations between the K-ABC Mental Processing Composite and WISC-R Full Scale IQ suggests the two tests are measuring similar constructs for English and Punjabi children. The moderate correlation between these two tests for the Cantonese suggests the K-ABC and WISC-R may not be measuring intelligence the same way. An investigation of the biodemographic characteristics of each group indicated that cultural and linguistic factors might be contributing to the differential performance of the three groups on the K-ABC and WISC-R. Moreover, the implications of significant discrepancies between the K-ABC and WISC-R intelligence scales are discussed. Finally, the construct validity (concurrent validity and internal structure) of the K-ABC for use with English and Punjabi Canadians was considered acceptable; however, its use with Cantonese Canadians remains questionable.

Text

2010-08-11

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/27245

School Psychology

University of British Columbia

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