title: Problem solving ability in children with intellectual disability as measured by the Raven's colored progressive matrices.
abstract: This study investigated the developmental trajectory of problem solving ability in children with intellectual disability (ID) of different etiologies (Down Syndrome, Idiopathic ID or low functioning Autism) as measured on the Raven's Colored Progressive Matrices test (RCPM). Children with typical development (TD) and children with ID were matched on total correct performance (i.e., non-verbal mental age) on the RCPM. RCPM total correct performance and the sophistication of error types were found to be associated with receptive vocabulary in all participants, suggesting that verbal ability plays a role in more sophisticated problem solving tasks. Children with ID made similar errors on the RCPM as younger children with TD as well as more positional error types. This result suggests that children with ID who are deficient in their cognitive processing resort to developmentally immature problem solving strategies when unable to determine the correct answer. Overall, the findings support the use of RCPM as a valid means of matching intellectual capacity of children with TD and ID.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychological Science, Faculty of Science, Technology and Engineering, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria 3086, Australia. Electronic address: n.goharpey@latrobe.edu.au.
authors.forename: Nahal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Goharpey
authors.forename: David P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Crewther
authors.forename: Sheila G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Crewther
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011340:Problem Solving / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Autism; Down Syndrome; Error analyses; Intellectual disability; Non-verbal mental age; Raven's Colored Progressive Matrices; Receptive language