The Early Detection of Minimal Brain Dysfunction

Abstract

To avoid emotional and learning difficulties in children with minimal brain dysfunction (MBD) early detection is desirable, and a battery of tests has been devised to achieve this. The battery was administered to 228 children at the start of their kindergarten year. Of 49 children who failed the battery, 25 were matched with 25 controls and were examined in detail neurologically and psychologically. The battery distinguished normal children (who passed) from those who failed. In the latten group, two types of children were found: (1) children clinically diagnosed as having MBD, (2) children thought to be immature, some of whom improved on readministration of the test battery eight months later and who are expected to show continued improvement but will likely have difficulty in Grade I. However, three false positives and one false negative were found. On 11 of the 12 tests the mean scores of the immature were better than those of the MBD.

Measuring intelligence with the Goodenough-Harris Drawing Test.

“…For the most part, the GH accounted for less than 10% of the variance in measures of academic achievement, raising the question of the test's theoretical soundness as an intellectual measure as well as its practical utility as a screening device. The incremental validity of the GH in relation to other predictors was assessed in six studies (Dudek et al, 1969 1967c; Eaves, Kendall, & Critchton, 1972;Hall & Chansky, 1971;Henderson et al, 1973;Panther, 1967;Pihl & Nimrod, 1976;Serwer et al, 1972;Stevenson, Parker, Wilkinson, Hegion, & Fish, 1976). In each case, the GH added so little to the battery's predictive ability that it was excluded from the final regression equation.…”