Article Title: Development and Preliminary Validation of an Indigenous Scale for Assessment of Learning Disabilities
Author(s): Javaria Zahra, Farhat Jamil & Ruhi Khalid
Institute(s): Institute of Psychology, Beaconhouse National University, Lahore
Journal: Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 2014, Vol. 12, No.2, 27-37
Correspondence Address: Javaria Zahra, Institute of Psychology, Beaconhouse National University, Lahore. E-mail: Javaria.zahra@gmail.com
Abstract
The present study was conducted to develop a valid and reliable indigenous scale for assessment of Learning Disabilities. The study was divided in two phases. In Phase I a culturally relevant item pool was generated through a review of literature and conducting interviews with primary school teachers, parents of primary school children, school counselors and school psychologists, and existing scales of learning disabilities. In phase II, factor structure, internal consistency and validity of the scale were established. Exploratory Factor Analysis was applied to identify the factor structure of 99 items of Learning Disabilities Scale (LDS). Factorial validity was estimated on a sample of 300 students and four factors were explored. These four factors were spoken language, listening ability & cognition, reading ability, writing skill & spelling ability and numerical ability. These factors explained almost 59% of the total item variance and yielded a significant Cronbach alpha (α = .98). Criterion related construct validity was established by comparing normal children with those diagnosed with learning disabilities. The results showed that LDS significantly discriminates the mentioned groups which proved the validity of the scale. The study holds useful implications for teachers, parents, school counsellors and school psychologists.
Keywords: learning disabilities, assessment, reading ability, writing ability, numerical ability.
