Phonological Assessment Instrument: evidence of construct validity

Area of Science:

• Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
• Clinical Psychology
• Developmental Pediatrics

Background:

• Accurate diagnosis of Speech Sound Disorder (SSD) is crucial for early intervention.
• A validated assessment instrument is needed for Brazilian Portuguese speakers.
• Existing diagnostic tools may lack sufficient construct validity for this population.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the construct validity of a Phonological Assessment Instrument for Brazilian Portuguese.
• To evaluate the instrument's diagnostic accuracy based on contrastive analysis and speech severity.
• To provide a reliable tool for identifying SSD in children.

Main Methods:

• Evaluated 176 children (5-9 years) using the Phonological Assessment Instrument.
• Classified participants as having SSD or typical phonological development based on DSM-5 criteria.
• Employed Kappa Coefficient, Student's t-test, and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis for validity and performance assessment.

Main Results:

• The instrument demonstrated agreement and significant differentiation between diagnostic groups.
• Achieved a diagnostic cut-off point of ≥96.17% with an excellent area under the ROC curve.
• Showed satisfactory sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values.

Conclusions:

• The Phonological Assessment Instrument provides evidence of construct validity for diagnosing SSD in Brazilian Portuguese.
• The instrument is a valuable addition to clinical assessment and research tools in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences.
• Its accuracy contributes to the performance properties of diagnostic instruments in the field.