An old issue in psychological assessment is to what extent power and speed each are measured by a given intelligence test. Starting from accuracy and response time data, an approach based on posterior time limits (cut-offs of recorded response time) leads to three kinds of recoded data: time data (whether or not the response precedes the cut-off),…

This study investigated the psychometric properties of a number of neuropsychological tests adapted for use in sub-Saharan Africa. A total of 308 school-age children in a predominantly rural community completed the tests. These tests were developed to assess skills similar to those measured by assessments of cognitive development published for use…

Common rates employed in classificatory testing are the true positive rate (TPR), false positive rate (FPR), positive predictive power (PPP), and negative predictive power (NPP). FPR and TPR are estimated from research samples representing populations to be distinguished by classificatory testing. PPP and NPP are used by clinicians to classify…

Assessed the interrater reliability of the revised Advanced Psychodiagnostic Interpretation (API) (A. Raphael and C. Golden, 1998) scoring system for the Bender Gestalt Test (L. Bender, 1938). Agreement across nine raters exceeded 90% for each of three clinical protocols, and kappa statistics indicated good interrater reliability. (SLD)

Converging lines of evidence suggest that attorneys are influencing data relied on by psychological experts in forensic cases, usually by advising clients how to respond to psychological tests or by prompting them in other ways. This article alerts psychologists to this threat to the validity of psychological and neuropsychological evaluations.…

A survey of 26 Rorschach experts and 19 students of Rorschach use was conducted to help students using the Exner Comprehensive System determine whether to code movement for nouns with definitions that include movement. Experts and students did not reach agreement, but a literature review suggests such nouns should often be coded as movement. (SLD)

Administered 12 psychological and 7 neurobehavioral performance tests twice to nonclinical normative samples of 30 adults (computer format only) and 30 adults (computer and conventional administration) with one week between administrations. Results suggest that individual test-retest reliability is not affected when tests are administered as part…

The construct validity of neuropsychological tests in patients with schizophrenia was studied with 39 patients who were evaluated with a battery of six tests assessing attention, memory, and abstract reasoning abilities. Results support the construct validity of the neuropsychological tests in patients with schizophrenia. (SLD)

Eighty-seven normal older people were administered the Wisconsin Sorting Test on two occasions averaging over a year apart. There were average retest gains of 5 to 7 standard score points. The standard error of prediction, standard error of difference, and abnormal test-retest discrepancy scores were calculated for clinical use. (SLD)

This study investigated the effect of acculturation on Halstead-Reitan neuropsychological test performance on nonimpaired Hispanic Americans using 3 groups of 50 subjects: Mexican American, Anglo-American, and Mexican. A significant effect for acculturation was found on several measures. Clinical and research applications are discussed. (SLD)

As part of a neuropsychological assessment, 95 adult patients completed either standard or computerized versions of the Category Test. Subjects who completed the computerized version exhibited more errors than those who completed the standard version, suggesting that it may be more difficult. (SLD)

The emotional cognitive relationship was examined in 136 heart transplant candidates undergoing psychosocial and cognitive assessment as part of evaluation for transplantation. Results show increased emotional distress was reliably associated with decreased cognitive functioning in patients who scored as nondefensive on the Minnesota Multiphasic…

The Stroop Color-Word Test was administered to 1,856 cognitively screened, healthy Dutch-speaking participants aged 24 to 81 years. The effects of age, gender, and education on Stroop test performance were investigated to adequately stratify the normative data. The results showed that especially the speed-dependent Stroop scores (time to complete…

A new assessment scheme--the Short-Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability (START)-- presents a workable method for assessing risks to self and others encountered in mentally and personality disordered clients. This study aimed to demonstrate (a) prevalence and severity of risk behaviors measured by the START, (b) psychometric properties of…