In New Zealand, Māori currently experience the "poorest health status of any ethnic group" characterised by high rates of physical and mental illness, educational underachievement, unemployment, criminal incarceration, and low socioeconomic status (Durie, 1998; Ministry of Health, 1999, 2002a, p. 2). Despite attempts to reduce the disparities between Māori and other New Zealanders, Māori continue to have a lower life expectancy than non-Māori (Durie, 1998; Reid, 1999). Māori children show similar levels of disadvantage experiencing high rates of illness and preventable death (Ministry of Health, 1998). Māori children also achieve poorly in educational settings, with literacy levels and overall involvement in education found to be below that of non-Māori (Ministry of Education, 2003a). Research findings have identified that health and educational disparities may be explained in part, by a mismatch between current approaches to practice and service delivery, and the values, beliefs, and experiences of Māori (Phillips, McNaughton, & MacDonald, 2004). In line with such findings, a number of standardised psychometric tests developed outside of New Zealand, have also been found to produce culturally biased results when used with Māori (Ogden, 2003; Ogden & McFarlane-Nathan, 1997). The Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT-III) is one such test which is currently used in New Zealand to measure receptive vocabulary skills (Stockman, 2000). This research investigated the suitability of the PPVT-III with 46 Māori children from three different age groups. Results revealed that the PPVT-III appeared to be suitable for use with Māori, although a number of suggestions were made as to ways in which the administration and interpretation of PPVT-III test scores could be adjusted when working with Māori. Additional research is required to establish whether changes to culturally biased items may improve the validity of the PPVT-III for use with Māori.

In New Zealand, Māori currently experience the "poorest health status of any ethnic group" characterised by high rates of physical and mental illness, educational underachievement, unemployment, criminal incarceration, and low socioeconomic status (Durie, 1998; Ministry of Health, 1999, 2002a, p. 2). Despite attempts to reduce the disparities between Māori and other New Zealanders, Māori continue to have a lower life expectancy than non-Māori (Durie, 1998; Reid, 1999). Māori children show similar levels of disadvantage experiencing high rates of illness and preventable death (Ministry of Health, 1998). Māori children also achieve poorly in educational settings, with literacy levels and overall involvement in education found to be below that of non-Māori (Ministry of Education, 2003a). Research findings have identified that health and educational disparities may be explained in part, by a mismatch between current approaches to practice and service delivery, and the values, beliefs, and experiences of Māori (Phillips, McNaughton, & MacDonald, 2004). In line with such findings, a number of standardised psychometric tests developed outside of New Zealand, have also been found to produce culturally biased results when used with Māori (Ogden, 2003; Ogden & McFarlane-Nathan, 1997). The Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT-III) is one such test which is currently used in New Zealand to measure receptive vocabulary skills (Stockman, 2000). This research investigated the suitability of the PPVT-III with 46 Māori children from three different age groups. Results revealed that the PPVT-III appeared to be suitable for use with Māori, although a number of suggestions were made as to ways in which the administration and interpretation of PPVT-III test scores could be adjusted when working with Māori. Additional research is required to establish whether changes to culturally biased items may improve the validity of the PPVT-III for use with Māori.

There is limited research on the effects of antibiotic use during pregnancy on neurodevelopmental outcomes of offspring in early childhood. The aim of this study was to investigate associations between antibiotic use during early pregnancy and neurodevelopmental outcomes, both behavioral and cognitive, in the offspring during early childhood. This thesis examined a longitudinal study of 570 mother-child pairs where prenatal exposures and at least one neurodevelopment outcome assessment were recorded. An interview was conducted with mothers on average one year after delivery to collect information on prenatal exposures. Neurodevelopmental outcomes were assessed between the ages 5–11 years using the cognitive-based outcomes of Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT-III) and the Beery-Buktenica Test of Visual Motor Integration-Fifth Edition (VMI-5) and behavioral-based outcomes of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Teacher Report Form (TRF). Adjusted mean differences (adjMD) in outcome measures were calculated between mothers reporting antibiotics use and mothers reporting treated infections. Antibiotic use during pregnancy was not significantly associated with the two cognitive measures but was associated with increased total behavioral problems reported by mothers (adjMD: 2.60; CI: 0.50, 4.69) and teachers (adjMD 2.60; 95% CI 0.44, 4.76). Overall, antibiotics use during pregnancy was not associated with differences in childhood cognition but may be associated with greater behavior problems.

The comparability of PPVT and PPVT-R scores among retarded adults were examined. The sample consisted of 96 clients, who had been previously diagnosed as mildly, moderately, or severely retarded. The PPVT (Form A) and PPVT-R (Form L) were administered to all participants in counter balanced order. Significant correlations were found between the two tests for the total sample as well as for females and males. Additionally, the PPVT-R was found to be capable of discriminating differing levels or retardation. However, with the exception of the severely retarded group, mean PPVT-R Standard Score Equivalent (SSE) scores tended to be approximately 20 points lower than PPVT IQ scores. Some clinical implications of these results were discussed.

Många barn i Sverige växer idag upp med fler språk än ett. Detta gör att logopeder behöver kunskap om normal språkutveckling hos flerspråkiga, för att kunna skilja denna från språkstörning och därmed minska risken att över- och underdiagnostisera flerspråkiga med en sådan diagnos. Syftet med denna studie var därför att undersöka vilka skillnader som föreligger mellan enspråkiga och flerspråkiga barns berättande, med särskilt fokus på barnens ordförråd. Fem flerspråkiga barn i femårsåldern som talade svenska och engelska testades med Buss-sagan (BST) och Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), och jämfördes med en kontrollgrupp bestående av sex enspråkigt svensktalande barn. De flerspråkiga testades på både svenska och engelska och jämförelser gjordes såväl kvantitativt som kvalitativt inom och mellan grupperna. Inga statistiskt signifikanta skillnader kunde uppmätas på BST eller PPVT. På samtliga uppmätta parametrar märktes dock en variation inom den flerspråkiga gruppen som var större än inom den enspråkiga. En kvalitativ bearbetning visade att enspråkigas berättelser oftast var kortare men mer korrekta med avseende på exempelvis ordval. En måttlig positiv korrelation (r=0,49) nära statistisk signifikans (p=0,054) fanns mellan resultaten på BST och PPVT, vilket indikerar ett samband mellan ordförråd och förmågan att återge Buss-sagan korrekt. Slutsatsen man kan dra är att flerspråkiga som grupp är väldigt heterogen samt att ordförråd är en språklig hörnsten som får genomslag på andra språkliga förmågor, exempelvis narrativ sådan. / Many children in Sweden grow up speaking more than one language. This demands that Speech-Language Pathologists are knowledgeable about normal bilingual language development to be able to distinguish bilinguals with typical language development from those with language impairment, thereby lessening the risk of bilingual children being given the wrong diagnosis. The aim of the present study was to investigate which differences there are between monolingual and bilingual children’s narratives, with extra focus on their vocabulary. Five bilingual children, five years of age, speaking Swedish and English were tested with the Bus Story Test (BST) and Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), and were compared to a control group of six monolingual Swedish speaking children. The bilingual children were tested in both languages, comparisons were made quantitatively as well as qualitatively within and between groups. No statisticially significant differences were found in neither BST or PPVT, however, a larger variation were present on all parameters studied in the bilingual group than in the monolingual group. A qualitative analysis showed that the monolingual children’s narratives generally were shorter but more correct regarding for instance word choice. A moderate positive correlation (r=0,49), near statistical significancy (p=0,054), were found between the results of PPVT and BST, indicating that there is a connection between vocabulary and the ability to be able to retail the content of the Bus Story correctly. Implications that can be drawn from this study is that bilinguals are heterogenous at group level when looking at language abilities. Another conclusion is that vocabulary is a linguistic cornerstone having a major impact on other linguistic abilities, for instance narrative competency.

Föräldraskattningsformuläret The Swedish Communicative Development Inventory (SCDI-III) är en modifierad form av MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventorys tredje form (CDI-III), och har tagits fram som ett forskningsinstrument för undersökning av språkförmågan hos barn i åldersgruppen 2;6-4;0 år. Det är av stor betydelse att barn i riskzonen för att utveckla en språkstörning upptäcks i tid för att språket ska kunna stimuleras under gynnsamma utvecklingsfaser. Kliniskt verksamma personer har givit uttryck för ett behov av ett material som kan ge en överblick av ett barns språkförmåga inför vidare språkutredning. Behovet av ett sådant material bidrog till att validiteten hos SCDI-III behövde undersökas, vilket utgjorde grunden för föreliggande studie. Syftet var att validera det redan normerade föräldraskattningsformuläret SCDI-III med etablerade språktest för att undersöka om det kan användas för att identifiera barn som ligger i riskzonen för språkstörning. Fyrtioen barn (21 flickor och 20 pojkar) i åldersgruppen 3;0-3;11 med svenska som modersmål, och 41 vårdnadshavare deltog i studien. Barnens grammatiska förmågor undersöktes med valideringsinstrumenten SIT (Språkligt Impressivt Test) och Gramba (Grammatiktest för barn) och deras lexikala förmågor undersöktes med BNT (Boston Naming Test) och PPVT-III (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test). Testningen utfördes på deras respektive förskolor och vårdnadshavarna fyllde i SCDI-III, varefter resultaten jämfördes.  Medelstarka signifikanta korrelationer konstaterades mellan skattningarna på SCDI:s ordproduktionsdel och barnens resultat på BNT respektive PPVT-III, samt mellan föräldrarnas skattningar på formulärets meningsbyggnadsdel och testresultaten på Gramba. Inga signifikanta eller starka korrelationer för meningskomplexitetsdelen i SCDI-III hittades mot något av de fyra testen. Utöver dessa resultat framkom att flickor presterade signifikant bättre än pojkar på Gramba och de äldsta barnen fick signifikant högre resultat än de yngsta på BNT. Resultaten i föreliggande studie tyder på att olika metoder och perspektiv behövs för bedömning av barns språkförmågor. SCDI-III skulle därför kunna vara ett kompletterade verktyg i form av ett samtalsunderlag mellan kliniskt verksamma logopeder och vårdnadshavare, men kan inte användas som enskilt bedömningsinstrument. / The Swedish Communicative Development Inventory (SCDI-III), a parent report instrument, is a modified form of the third version of the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory, and has been developed as a research tool for the investigation of the language ability of children aged 2;6 - 4;0 years. It is of great importance that children who are most at risk of developing a language impairment are identified in time in order to increase the possibility to stimulate their language in favourable developmental phases. Clinicians have expressed a need for a material that can provide an overview of a child’s language ability, prior to carrying out further language assessment. The need of such material has contributed to the need for an investigation of the validity of SCDI-III, which has formed the basis for the present study. The purpose was to validate the already standardized parent estimation form SCDI-III with established language assessments to investigate whether it can be used to identify children who are at risk for language impairment. Forty-one children (21 girls and 20 boys) aged 3;0 - 3;11 years, with Swedish as their mother tongue, and 41 guardians participated in the study. The grammatical abilities of the children were examined using the validation tools SIT (Språkligt Impressivt Test) and Gramba (Grammatiktest för barn) and the lexical abilities were examined using BNT (Boston Naming Test) and PPVT-III (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test). The testing was performed at their respective daycare center, and the guardians filled in SCDI-III, after which the results were compared.   Moderate significant correlations were found between estimations in SCDI’s word production section and the children’s production on the BNT and the result of the PPVT-III, and between parents’ evaluations in the sentence construction section of the questionnaire and the test results on Gramba. No significant or strong correlations in the sentence complexity section of the SCDI-III were found on any of the four SLP assessments. In addition to these results, girls performed significantly better than boys on Gramba and the oldest children had significantly better results than the youngest on the BNT. The results of the present study suggest a need for different methods and perspectives for the assessment of children’s language abilities. SCDI-III could therefore be a complementary tool in providing a basis for discussion between practicing speech-language pathologists and guardians, but cannot be used as an assessment tool by itself.

Speech and language pathologists (SLP) use vocabulary tests as one of several means of investigating and evaluating suspected speech and language disorders. A test widely used when assessing receptive vocabulary is Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) IV. Several different Swedish translations of PPVT-IV exists today, most of which have not yet been studied. Since earlier studies have confirmed that Swedish translations of PPVT lack a steadily increasing level of difficulty, Swedish SLPs are uncertain as to how applicable the test is on a Swedish population. In this study, a Swedish translation of PPVT-IV was revised with the purpose of constructing a steadily increasing level of difficulty. The study comprised 172 monolingual children from grade 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9, tested by the authors of this thesis. The participants were recruited from ten schools in Uppsala. For 21 of the 228 PPVT-IV items, two different translations were tested to enable adjustment of the level of difficulty afterwards. Based on the results of the participants, a revised translation was developed with a more steadily increasing level of difficulty. Further adaptations are still needed before standardised norms can be developed for a Swedish population. The results for every grade displayed an average score above the American age standards. Participants from grade 1 performed one year above, participants from grade 3, 5 and 7 all performed two years above, and participants from grade 9 performed six to eight years above the American age standards for the corresponding age. / Logopeder använder ordförrådstest som ett av flera instrument för att utreda och bedöma misstänkta språkliga svårigheter. Ett test som ofta används vid bedömning av det receptiva ordförrådet är Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) IV. På svenska finns idag flera olika översättningar av PPVT-IV vars användbarhet ej undersökts. Tidigare studier har visat att svenska översättningar av PPVT har brister i form av en ojämnt stigande svårighetsgrad och logopeder är därför osäkra på hur användbart testet är. I föreliggande studie reviderades en svensk översättning av PPVT-IV med syfte att konstruera en jämnt stigande svårighetsgrad. Studien omfattade 172 enspråkiga elever från årskurs 1, 3, 5, 7 och 9 testade av författarna till föreliggande uppsats. Deltagarna rekryterades från tio skolor i Uppsala. För 21 av de 228 uppgifterna i PPVT-IV testades två ord per uppgift för att möjliggöra justering av testets svårighetsgrad i efterhand. Utifrån deltagarnas resultat utarbetades en översättning som ger testet en mer jämnt stigande svårighetsgrad. Ytterligare revideringar behöver dock göras för att jämna ut svårighetsgraden ännu mer innan det är aktuellt att ta fram normer för en svensktalande population. I jämförelse med den amerikanska standardiseringen presterade de svenska deltagarna från samtliga årskurser i genomsnitt betydligt högre än motsvarande åldrar i den amerikanska populationen. Deltagarna från årskurs 1 presterade ca ett år högre, deltagarna från årskurs 3, 5 och 7 presterade ca två år högre och deltagarna från årskurs 9 presterade ca sex till åtta år högre än motsvarande åldrar inom den amerikanska standardiseringen.

Sammanfattning   Bakgrund   Forskning har visat att flerspråkiga barn riskerar missvisande resultat när de bedöms med statiska tester. Detta då statiska tester i regel är normerade på en enspråkig population. Som alternativ till statiska tester har dynamisk bedömning föreslagits. Dynamisk bedömning undersöker barns inlärningspotential.   Syfte   Syftet med studien var att jämföra flerspråkiga barns och enspråkiga barns prestation på ett statiskt test av ordförråd med deras prestation på en dynamisk bedömning av ordförråd. Förfarandet vid den dynamiska bedömningen är en sedan tidigare beprövad metod som testas med barn ur svenska förskoleklasser.   Metod   Studien omfattade 29 barn från olika skolor i en medelstor norrländsk kommun. Barnen var flerspråkiga och enspråkiga och hade alla börjat i svensk förskoleklass höstterminen 2018. Datainsamlingen skedde med ett statiskt pretest i form av Pearson Peabody Vocabulary Test-III för att därefter genomföra en dynamisk bedömning gällande ordförråd med de ord barnen inte kunde samt de ord barnen kunde.   Resultat   Resultatet visade att de enspråkiga barnen presterade signifikant bättre än de flerspråkiga i det statiska pretestet PPVT-III. I den dynamiska bedömningen kunde inga signifikanta skillnader påvisas.   Slutsats   Resultatet av den föreliggande studien är att flerspråkiga och enspråkiga barn presterade likvärdigt i den dynamiska bedömningen oavsett hur lågt de presterade i PPVT-III. Detta skiljer sig mot de resultat som uppvisas vid statisk testning där enspråkiga barn får signifikant bättre resultat än flerspråkiga barn.

The Model A and Model C Title I evaluation options were compared by using both options to measure the effectiveness of handicap intervention in a Head Start program. Two hundred three children in Jackson County (Oregon) were pretested with the Developmental Indicators of Learning Test (DIAL), the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), the Visual-Motor Integration Scale (VMI), and the Carrow Elicited Language Inventory (CELI). The 43 children who scored below the predetermined cut-off level were placed in a six-month intervention program. One hundred forty-nine children remaining in the Head Start program in May were posttested with the same tests. Model A analysis of mean scores of the intervention group indicated significant score change on all three testing instruments. Model C analysis indicated no positive score change. It was posited that the Model A effect in this project was large because it combined a positive intervention effect with a positive general program effect. The Model C option showed no effect because the estimated nonintervention scores were very large due to the large positive score change in the nonintervention group.

This theses deals with diagnostic of speech development of pre-school children. Its focus is on lexical-semantic language level. The goal of my work is to trace and map diagnostic possibilities in the lexical- semantic area of of pre-school children and to introduce the international PPVT test , considering its adaptation into czech language environment. Theses consists of two parts - the theoretical and empiric. Theoretical part is concern with the most important theories and personalities in the speech development and the process of experiencing language, characteristics of pre-school period, ontogenesis of speech and the ways to evaluate vocabulary and semantics in Czech and overseas. The empiric part examines the usages of PPVT in czech environment. The survey was realised by quantitative research, using datas from 236 tested individuals. The PPVT was adapted into czech language and given to preschool children, whose results were compared with the results of american children. The outcomes of the empiric part could be a solution for future research in the area, with the purpose of adapting a testing- language instrument into czech language and widening the limited possibilities in the field of language and speech development evaluation. Keywords: ontogenesis of speech, pre-school period,...