Construction of a Learning Disability Normative Sample for the Behavioural Assessment of the Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS): A Pilot Study.

Introduction. There is a paucity of executive function test batteries that have norms for samples of people with learning disabilities. As such, the present study aimed to construct a learning disability normative sample for the Behavioural Assessment of the Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS) adapted to increase accessibility for people with learning disabilities. The study also intended to compile normative data for informant scores on the Dysexecutive (DEX) Questionnaire. Participants. 31 people with a confirmed diagnosis of a learning disability. Normative sample eligibility criteria excluded those with confirmed diagnoses of an autism spectrum disorder, dementia, or Down’s syndrome. Those who had sustained a head injury that required hospitalisation for more than 24 hours or those currently in drug or alcohol treatment were also excluded. Method. Participants were assessed with the adapted BADS, the DEX Questionnaire and the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI). Standardised scores were derived using the bootstrap method (Efron, 1979). Results. Preliminary learning disability sample norms were constructed for the adapted BADS and informant scores on the DEX Questionnaire. The adapted BADS used in this study demonstrated acceptable inter-rater and internal consistency reliability, and face, content, and concurrent validity. Significant correlations were observed between the WAS I, the BADS, and the DEX Questionnaire. Conclusion. The current study requires extension and replication but the construction of learning disability sample norms for the BADS might be useful in the assessment of challenging and offending behaviour, capacity, and dementia. Suggestions for extending the current study are offered.