Selective Samples and the Accuracy of Screening for Intellectual Disabilities: Learning Disability Screening Questionnaire

Abstract

The Learning Disability Screening Questionnaire (LDSQ) was developed primarily to provide a short and effective screening instrument to indicate possible intellectual disability amongst persons who come in contact with the service system. This study examined the validity of the Norwegian version of LDSQ in a sample of 35 subjects. All participants were outpatients referred for neuropsychological examinations. WAIS-III full-scale score was used for criterion validity. At a stated cut-off score of 46.6%, LDSQ showed several false negatives and false positives but no true positives. This raises the question of whether this test represents a valid screening instrument for learning disabilities in a clinical sample.

The use of an impact framework to evaluate the impact of research on policy and practice: Screening questionnaires for intellectual disability

“…Many studies, published by independent researchers, have cited the research underpinning and/or used the LDSQ and CAIDS-Q as part of their own research. This has included their potential use by nurses (Delahunty, 2017); in homeless services (Stone et al, 2019); in relation to the impact of immigration on mental health (von Werthern et al, 2018); in criminal justice services (Ali and Galloway, 2016;Board, Ali and Bartlett, 2015;Boer et al, 2016;Chaplin et al, 2017;Courtney and Lascelles, 2010;Ellem and Richards, 2018;Forrester et al, 2017;Geijsen, Kop and de Ruiter 2018;Gudjonsson, Gonzalez and Young 2019;Gulati et al, , 2018aKaal, 2010;Kaal, Nijman and Moonen 2015: McCarthy et al, 2015McKinnon, Thorp and Grube, 2015;Murphy, Gardner and Freeman 2015;O'Mahony, Smith and Milne, 2011;Poynter, 2011;Sarrett, 2017;Sen et al, 2018;Short et al, 2018;Silva, Gough and Weeks 2015;Wakeling and Ramsay, 2019;Young et al, 2013Young et al, , 2018; as part of treatment and intervention studies (Idro et al, 2019;Hall et al, 2019); as part of the neuropsychological assessment or screening processes (Aubry and Bourdin, 2018;Bjørgen, Gimse and Søndenaa. 2016;Doyle and Mattson, 2015;McInnis, Hills and Chapman 2012;Murphy, 2019;…”

Screening for intellectual disabilities: a validation of the Hayes Ability Screening Index for in-patients with substance use disorder

“…In addition, short versions of IQ tests, such as the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence-WASI (Wechsler, 2011a) have been developed for quickly measuring IQ. As with the WASI, both the RAPID and the LDSQ have been validated against IQ only, and studies warrant caution in use of the Norwegian versions for both the WASI and the LDSQ (Bjørgen, Gimse, & Søndenaa, 2016;Siqveland, Dalsbø, Harboe, & Leiknes, 2014). The RAPID is currently not translated into or validated in Norwegian.…”

Learning disability and challenges in male prisons: programme screening evaluation

“…The learning disability screening questionnaire (LDSQ; McKenzie et al , 2012) comprises seven items including reading and writing, telling the time and employment. Advantages of the tool include ease of administration (Bjorgen et al , 2016) and short administration time. It has been reported to be more predictive of whether someone has an LD, when compared with WAIS-III (Mckenzie et al , 2012), and to be feasible for use in prisons (Murphy et al , 2017).…”