Use of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test with Preschool Children

Abstract

The performance of 563 Ss on the PPVT and RSB provided the basis for a discussion which emphasized the limitations in the use of the Peabody with disadvantaged preschool children. Sizable discrepancies existed between means and standard deviations for the two measures despite their rather high correlation. This finding, together with inconsistencies found in the Peabody normative tables at the preschool level, indicated restricted use of the PPVT. It was concluded that the use of PPVT IQ data in the evaluation of preschool programs could produce invalid results and thus lead to spurious conclusions regarding program effectiveness.