RULES FOR NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS - CLASSIFICATION OF BRAIN-FUNCTION IN OLDER CHILDREN

A system of rules based on neuropsychological test data and the 2nd author's 4 methods of inference (level of performance, right-left differences, patterns of performance, and pathognomonic signs) was developed for classifying 3 samples (19 Ss each) of 9-14 yr old children as normal, learning disabled, or brain damaged. The 37 rules used a 4-point scaled scoring system with 0 representing adequate performance, 3 indicating distinctly abnormal performance, and 1 and 2 indicating intermediate performance. The rules system classified children into the 3 groups (normal, learning disabled, and brain damaged) with 73.3% accuracy. Although in need of replication, results indicate that the rules system is sensitive to neuropsychological differences between these groups and represents a set of initial guidelines for differentiating among normal, brain-damaged, and learning disabled children. Results also support the contention that learning disability often represents a degree of cerebral dysfunction that is frequently undetected by neurological examination but that can be reliably measured by neuropsychological tests. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1979 American Psychological Association.