Research into psychological instruments for deaf children and adolescents

As a result of the lack of psychological tests for deaf children, "Curium", the Dutch Academic Centre for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, started in 1992 a project to develop and evaluate methods for diagnosing the personality of deaf children. Three tests were chosen:

- the Children’s Versions A and B of the Family Relation Test (Bene and Anthony, 1978)

- the sentence Completion Test (Loevinger, 1970, 1976; Westenberg, 1994)

- the Dutch Personality Questionnaire Junior (Luteijn, van Dijk, van der Ploeg, 1989).

The tests were presented to experts on deafness: psychologists, psycholinguists and deaf adults. Remarks and suggestions led to experimental versions of the tests and administered to two groups of deaf children.

All children were prelingual deaf, with a mean level of intelligence, a hearing loss above 90 dB and no other handicaps. Sessions were registered on videotape. Criteria for assessing the suitability of the items were: if 66% of the children comprehended an item immediately, it was maintained. An item was eliminated if 66% of the children, even after explanation didn’t understand the meaning. Adjustments were made if less than 66% didn’t understand the item immediately and also less than 66% didn’t understand after explanation. Adjustments were carried out on the base of the evidently successful additional explanation.

Results: Deaf children needed nearly twice as much time to complete the tests compared to hearing children. Results of the experimental F.R.T.-A: twenty-five of 45 items were comprehended without and 20 with explanation by all children. Twenty items required ajustments. No items needed to be eliminated. In group B no difficulties occured in the comprehension of the items of the experimental F.R.T.-B. Results of the S.C.T.: nine of the younger children got stuck halfway before finishing the test. Of the 42 items, 27 could be maintained without adjustements. Nine items required adjustment and 6 items were removed. Results of the S.C.T. in group B: one child didn’t want to make the test. Twenty-seven items of 42 could be maintained entirely. Six items were adjusted. No items needed to be eliminated. Results of the D.P.Q.-J: half and more of the items in every category required adjustments.In the category "Stubborness" most of the items were not comprehended by 66% of the children, even after explanation and therefore eliminated. In the category "Social Inadequacy" only one item was not comprehended with explanation and eliminated.

The pilot-study resulted in three revised questionnaires: the Family Relation Test for Deaf Children (12/13 years)and Deaf-Junior (9/10 years); the Sentence Completion Test for Deaf Children (12/13 years)and in Sign Language (9/10 years); the Personality Questionnaire for Deaf Children (12/13 years).