Neurological Findings and the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children

Sequential processing and simultaneous processing of information have been hypothesized to correlate with specific areas or hemispheres of the brain. If there are such relationships, children with demonstrated localized damage would be more likely to show a deficit in one type of processing. Twenty-seven children referred for neuropsychological testing were given the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC). Of 14 children with focal or localized neurologic findings, every child had a significant discrepancy on the K-ABC in either direction. Of 13 with nonfocal developmental problems (either with soft signs or normal neurological exams), 3 had significant discrepancies. Chi-square was 17.1, p <= .001, and Mann Whitney U was 15, p <= .001. However, hemispheric localizing signs and direction of discrepancy were not as clearly related, although a trend was found for right-handed children with left-brain focal findings to have a higher incidence of Sequential scores significantly lower than Simultaneous scores.