A Factor Analysis Comparison of the ITPA and PLS with Mentally Retarded Children

Abstract

The ITPA and PLS were administered to a stratified sample of 50 mentally retarded children in counterbalanced order. The intercorrelation matrix was subjected to a principle components factor analysis with a varimax rotation through 19 iteration cycles. Each of the 15 subtests of the 2 instruments had high loadings on 1 of 5 different factors. These were immediate recall of auditory symbols, general linguistic ability, imitation of a motor act, ability to make a gestural response to a verbal stimulus, and comprehension and/or expression.