Do Neuropsychological Measures Contribute to the Prediction of Academic Achievement? The Predictive Validity of the LNNB-CR Pathognomonic Scale

Abstract

It is well known that measures of intelligence are good predictors of academic achievement. Because many children with behavioral or learning problems also do poorly on neuropsychological measures, it was of interest to examine the predictive validity of a measure of neuropsychological integrity and determine its joint and independent contribution in comparison with traditional intelligence measures. The Pathognomonic Scale (PS) of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery-Children's Revision (LNNB-CR), which consists of the 13 items from the full LNNB-CR that best discriminate brain-damaged from normal children, was obtained for a sample of 77 children referred to a psychology clinic for behavioral and emotional problems. The PS was found to account for a small (12% or less), but statistically significant amount of variance that was independent of that accounted for by WISC-R intelligence scores in predicting reading and spelling, but not arithmetic achievement. These results provide limited support for the use of the PS in the prediction of academic achievement.