Reliability and Validity of the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test for Children with Hearing Impairments

This researcher investigated the reliability and validity of the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) for a hearing-impaired population. The subjects consisted of 15 hearing-impaired children between the ages of five and eight who are are enrolled in special education programs for the hearing-impaired. Three week test-retest reliability coefficients were moderate to high for all subtests (.65 to .89) and high for all scales and the total score (.88 to .96). Intracorrelations support the structure of the UNIT in that subtests demonstrated high correlations with the scale they were purported to represent. Concurrent validity was assessed with the Naglieri Draw-A-Person (DAP) during the first testing session. The UNIT and the DAP demonstrated correlations within the moderate to high range (.60 to .77) between the scales and total score of the UNIT and the three drawings and the total of the DAP. Results are discussed relevant to other measures utilized with hearing-impaired populations. The most important implication is that the UNIT appears to be a promising instrument for assessing intellectual abilities in children with hearing-impairments