Child maltreatment has the potential to alter a child's neurodevelopmental trajectory and substantially increase the risk of later psychiatric disorders, as well as to deleteriously impact neurocognitive functioning throughout the lifespan. Child maltreatment has been linked to multiple domains of neurocognitive impairment, including language, visual-spatial functioning, intelligence, executive functioning, and motor skills. Research is increasingly indicating that alterations in neurobiological functioning occur as a result of childhood maltreatment, which in turn may produce an epigenetic and transgenerational effect. School psychologists should be aware of these factors when working with maltreated children to better understand their current functioning and assessment results, and to educate family members, school personnel, and the community about the adverse effects of childhood maltreatment, as well as to work toward prevention. C 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.In essence, clinical neuropsychology is the application of the brain-behavior relationship to answer diagnostic questions, design strength-based interventions, and determine functional deficits, outcomes, and prognoses. For pediatric neuropsychology, this process involves the integration of neurological, psychiatric, genetic, psychosocial, physiological, academic, and environmental variables, all in the context of developmental trajectories. At first glance, the inclusion of an article with this approach may seem surprising in a discussion of child abuse and neglect, henceforth referred to as child maltreatment, as it relates to the practice of school psychology. This may stem from a typical approach of primarily considering familial, societal, and environmental variables in studying child maltreatment; however, child maltreatment can have a profound impact on the child's developing central nervous system. Given the fact that most observable behavior involves the central nervous system, it stands to reason that considering neuropsychological variables for children who have been maltreated is an essential aspect of interacting clinically with this population. School psychologists are essential members of the treatment team for maltreated children and, as such, the primary focus of this article is to discuss the role of the brain-behavior relationship and associated longitudinal considerations for school psychologists working with children who have been maltreated. NEURODEVELOPMENTAL FACTORS IN CHILD MALTREATMENTThe central nervous system undergoes massive changes very early in a child's life, including substantial development during the perinatal period. Maltreatment during this time can have a profound impact on neurodevelopmental processes. Given that neurological development proceeds throughout childhood, disruption at different times in this process can interfere with the acquisition of different developmental milestones. Indeed, when more basic functions are impacted by maltreatment, the brain is less able to develop in a manner that facilitates hea...

The estimation of premorbid general intellectual functioning using word reading tests has a rich history of validation and is a common assessment practice for neuropsychologists. What is less well-researched is the approach used to estimate premorbid functioning of non-intellectual domains, such as executive functions, including verbal fluency. The current study evaluated this relationship with 41 adult college students who completed the Word Reading subtest of the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test-Second Edition (WIAT-II) and the Verbal Fluency test from the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS). Path analysis indicated that only Letter Fluency (a measure of phonemic fluency) was statistically significantly related to Word Reading and the relationship was somewhat weak. The relationship between Category Fluency (a measure of semantic fluency) and Category Switching (a measure of verbal fluency cognitive set-shifting) to Word Reading was nonsignificant. Participants also completed the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition (WAIS-III), and as expected a strong relationship was found between Word Reading and the Verbal IQ (VIQ), Performance IQ (PIQ), and Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ). Results of this study strongly suggest that caution be exercised when extrapolating an estimate of premorbid verbal fluency abilities from measures of word reading.