An analysis of the reliability and validity of the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) with Puerto Rican children /
The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity and reliability of the results of the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT: Bracken & McCallum, 1998) with Puerto Rican children and to compare the performance on the UNIT of a sample of 60 Puerto Rican children with a matched grou...
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| Format: | Thesis Book |
| Language: | English |
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[Place of publication not identified] :
[publisher not identified] ;
2001.
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://proxy.library.tamu.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=726104371&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=2945&RQT=309&VName=PQD |
| Summary: | The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity and reliability of the results of the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT: Bracken & McCallum, 1998) with Puerto Rican children and to compare the performance on the UNIT of a sample of 60 Puerto Rican children with a matched group of 60 non-Hispanic children from the standardization sample. The rationale for conducting this study was the lack of adequate psychometric and psychoeducational instruments to evaluate Puerto Rican children and youth. The UNIT and the Reading Cluster of the Bateria Woodcock-Munoz Pruebas de Aprovechamiento Revisada (Bateria-R APR: Woodcock & Munoz-Sandoval, 1996) were administered to participants with parental consent. Statistical analyses of the scores were conducted. Results of the statistical analyses did not yield positive evidence for the internal consistency of five of the six subtests of the UNIT. Only Symbolic Memory approached the reliability standard deemed acceptable for tests of cognitive ability. The coefficients for the four subscales, as well as the ones for the Standard Battery IQ and the Extended Battery IQ also failed to show acceptable internal consistency. The stability of UNIT scores also was assessed in the present study. None of the subtests, scales, or total scale score approached or reached the recommended coefficient of 0.90. The UNIT also yielded significant moderate to low correlations with the Bateria-R Reading Cluster and a significant difference (almost one-half standard deviation) between the scores of the Puerto Rican sample and the U.S. non-Hispanic sample on the UNIT's Extended Battery Full Scale IQ. These results suggest that although it may be a fair instrument to measure the cognitive abilities of Puerto Rican children, the UNIT is not an optimal measure to use with this population. The UNIT should be used with this population as part of a multifaceted assessment process and results should be interpreted with caution. |
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| Item Description: | Vita. "Major Subject: School Psychology". |
| Physical Description: | ix, 98 leaves ; 28 cm. Issued also on microfiche from University Microfilm Inc. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (leaves 84-93). |