Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test.

Ø Name of test

The name of test is universal nonverbal intelligence test.

Ø  Purpose of test:

The Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) is designed to provide a fair, comprehensive, standardized, and norm-referenced assessment of general intelligence with entirely nonverbal administration and response formats. The UNIT assesses four facets of intelligence: reasoning, memory, symbolic processing, and no symbolic processing.

Ø  Operational definition:

It is defined as:

The Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) is a set of individually administered specialized tasks that measure cognitive abilities.

Ø Original author:

Author(s): Bruce A Bracken R Steve McCallum

The Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) was developed by Bruce A. Bracken and R. Steve McCallum. It tests children in the K-12 range, from kindergarten (5 or 6 year olds) through to 12^th grade (17-18 year olds) and serves as an unbiased assessment of intelligence for the speech-, language- and hearing-impaired, those with different cultural or language backgrounds or who are verbally uncommunicative

Ø Revision of the test:

UNIT Test Review Form:

UNIT Test Review Form Name of Reviewer: Carla Guerguy

Title of Test: Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test™ (UNIT™)

It is selected: To measure general cognitive functioning, to identify intellectual giftedness, cognitive disabilities, and cognitive strengths and weaknesses. UNIT is for persons belonging to groups where traditional intelligence testing would be inappropriate or unfair Development.

Ø Development scales (scales manual)

The scales of UNIT are:

·         Cognitive abilities

·         Symbolic Mediation

·         Symbolic Memory

·         Communication

·         Analogic Reasoning

·         Object Memory

·         Nonsymbolic Mediation

·         Spatial Memory

·         Cube Design

·         Mazes

The UNIT consists of 4 subscales:

·         The Memory Quotient (MQ),

·         The Reasoning Quotients (RQ),

·         The Symbolic Quotient (SQ),

·         The Nonsymbolic Quotient (NSQ).

The scaled scores on each of the subscales are combined to form the Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ) score.

Ø Administration

UNIT can be administered in three forms;

·         Abbreviated Battery (10-15 minutes),

·         Standard Battery (30 minutes)

·        Extended Battery (45 minutes)

Examiners employ eight universal hand and body gestures to explain the tasks to examinees. Examiner demonstrations, sample items, corrective responses, transitional checkpoint items, and scored items that do not permit examiner feedback, aid the nonverbal administration process. Examiners may administer two, four, or all six subtests depending on the referral. The Abbreviated Battery consists of the first two subtests, takes about 15 minutes to administer, and is ideal for screening of cognitive functioning. The Standard Battery consists of the first four subtests, takes about 30 minutes to administer, and is ideal for eligibility and diagnostic decision making. The Extended Battery consists of all six subtests, takes about 45 minutes to administer, and provides the most in-depth diagnostic data of the three test batteries. Regardless of which battery is administered, the examinee will receive an equal number of reasoning, memory, symbolic, and nonsymbolic tasks.

Ø  Scoring:

UNIT can be scored by hand or scored with the UNIT Compuscore software. UNIT Compuscore provides professionals the option to quickly convert raw scores to derived scores, and allows for changes in confidence bands and significance levels. The narrative text report contains a text section that can be exported for word processing, and the program includes integrated help menus for ease-of-use.

System Requirements

• Microsoft^® Windows 95/98/NT/2000/ME operating system
• Pentium^® Processor
• 20 MB hard disk space (30 MB recommended)
• 32 MB of RAM
• CD-ROM drive

Ø  Interpretation:

UNIT interpretation lends itself to a broad range of complex memory and reasoning abilities, including both verbal (symbolic) and nonverbal mediation. Memory subtests measure recall of content, location, and sequence. Reasoning subtests measure pattern processing, problem solving, understanding of relationships, and planning abilities.

Each of the six subtests will yield scaled scores with a mean of 10 and an SD of 3. In addition, the following five quotient scores are available, each with a mean of 100 and an SD of 15: Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ); Memory Quotient (MQ); Reasoning Quotient (RQ); Symbolic Quotient (SQ); and Nonsymbolic Quotient (NSQ).

The Examiner’s Manual illustrates how UNIT reduces the negative impact of language limitations through studies with African Americans, Asians, Hispanics, Native Americans, and individuals with limited English proficiency, as well as with individuals who are deaf and hearing impaired. Diagnostic information relevant to common educational exceptionalities, including mental retardation, giftedness, and learning disabilities is provided.

Ø  Standardization:

The UNIT was standardized using an American sample of 2,100 children ages 5 years and 0 months to 17 years and 11 months and 30 days.

Ø  Reliability and Validity:

Reliabilities are high, and validity studies include exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, which provide consistent support for the structure of the UNIT.

In Reliability: Standard Battery reliability ranges from .89-.95, Abbreviated Battery .84-.94, Extended Battery .91-.94

Validity studies show strong concurrent validity with many other measures of intelligence, and the UNIT appears to be a good predictor of academic achievement. In addition, discriminant validity evidence is reported, demonstrating that the UNIT differentiates among individuals with intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, or speech/language impairments, or those who are gifted.

Ø Research:

As such there is no research done in Pakistan but it is used all around the world as a research about universal nonverbal intelligence test is shown below:

Ø Physical growth and universal nonverbal intelligence test: associations in Zambia:

To investigate normative developmental body mass index (BMI) trajectories and associations of physical growth indicators--height, weight, head circumference (HC), and BMI--with nonverbal intelligence in an understudied population of children from sub-Saharan Africa.
A sample of 3981 students (50.8% male), grades 3-7, with a mean age of 12.75 years was recruited from 34 rural Zambian schools. Children with low scores on vision and hearing screenings were excluded. Height, weight, and HC were measured, and nonverbal intelligence was assessed using the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test, Symbolic Memory subtest and Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, Second Edition, and Triangles subtest.
Students in higher grades had a higher BMI over and above the effect of age. Girls had a marginally higher BMI, although that for both boys and girls was approximately 1 SD below the international Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and World Health Organization norms. When controlling for the effect of age, nonverbal intelligence showed small but significant positive relationships with HC (r = 0.17) and BMI (r = 0.11). HC and BMI accounted for 1.9% of the variance in nonverbal intelligence, over and above the contribution of grade and sex.
BMI-for-age growth curves of Zambian children follow observed worldwide developmental trajectories. The positive relationships between BMI and intelligence underscore the importance of providing adequate nutritional and physical growth opportunities for children worldwide and in sub-Saharan Africa in particular. Directions for future studies are discussed with regard to maximizing the cognitive potential of all rural African children.