Psychology
in
the
Schools
Volume
23,
April
I986
VALIDATION OF THE KAUFMAN ASSESSMENT BATTERY FOR
CHILDREN WITH A SAMPLE OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
DAVID A.
LAMPLEY
AND
JAMES
0.
RUST
Middle Tennessee State University
The validity of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) (Kaufman
&
Kaufman,
1983)
was investigated with a sample
of
preschool-age children. The
sample consisted
of
50
subjects aged
2%
through
4
who were distributed roughly
eqdally by age, sex, and race according
to
the
1980
census. The validity of the K-ABC
was examined using the Slosson Intelligence Test
(SIT)
(Slosson,
1982)
and the
Classroom Behavior Inventory-Preschool Form (CBI) (Schaefer
&
Edgerton,
1978)
as
criterion measures. The
SIT
and CBI-Preschool Form Verbal Intelligence Scale
were found to correlate significantly
(p<
.01)
with the global scales of the K-ABC.
The K-ABC did not differentiate between age
or
sex groups, but blacks scored lower
than whites. The findings are supportive
of
previous validity studies (Kaufman
&
Kauf-
man,
1983)
and two-factor theories of intelligence (e.g., Das, Kirby,
&
Jarman,
1975).
This study set out to investigate the concurrent validity of the Kaufman Assess-
ment Battery for Children (K-ABC) (Kaufman
&
Kaufman,
1983)
with a sample of
preschool children. The Slosson Intelligence Test (SIT) (Slosson,
1982)
and Classroom
Behavior Inventory-Preschool Form (CBI) (Schaefer
&
Edgerton,
1978)
were used as
criterion measures.
For years investigators have studied the mental processes of the human mind. Many
researchers, beginning with Spearman
(1904),
have advocated different factors in in-
telligence. Das, Kirby, and Jarman
(1975, 1979)
have built upon the earlier work of
Luria
(1966)
to form the successive-simultaneous theory. The K-ABC
is
based upon the
Luria-Das model, cerebral specialization theory, and is also analogous to an older theory,
that of Cattell
(1963)
and Horn
(1968)
regarding fluid and crystallized intelligence.
The K-ABC is an individually administered measure of intelligence and achieve-
ment for ages
2%
through
12%.
During the development of the K-ABC, special care
was taken to make it interesting for the preschool-age child (Kaufman
&
Kaufman,
1983).
The K-ABC contains four global scales: Sequential Processing, Simultaneous Processing,
Mental Processing Composite (MPC), Sequential plus Simultaneous, and Achievement.
The Sequential and Simultaneous Processing Scales correspond to the Luria-Das theory’s
Successive Simultaneous Processing view, respectively. In regard to the Cattell and Horn
theory, the Sequential and Simultaneous Processing scales appear to measure fluid mental
abilities, while the Achievement scale assesses crystallized abilities (Kaufman
&
Kauf-
man,
1983).
Furthermore, the Achievement scale measures some of the skills that have
traditionally been assessed by tests of global or verbal intelligence (Kaufman
&
Kauf-
man,
1983).
The SIT
is
one such measure of verbal intelligence (Swanson
&
Jacobson,
1970).
Also, the CBI-Preschool Form contains
11
scales, each measuring a particular
behavior, one
of
which is called verbal intelligence.
The present study also used a behavioral measure, the CBI-Preschool Form, as a
second criterion variable. Rather than simply relying on other tests
of
intelligence to
establish the concurrent validity of the K-ABC, the effort here was to include teacher
behavioral ratings of behavior. This approach seemed particularly important for
a
Reprint requests should be sent to David A. Lampley,
1619
Edmonson Circle, Nashville, TN
37211.
131