Assessment of visual-motor disabilities in young children: Toward differential diagnosis

Abstract

This study sought to determine if the nature of disability (visual, motor, or both) could be diagnosed for children with visual-motor integration disabilities and to determine methods by which appropriate diagnoses could be made. A total of 104 children aged 6 and 7 were selected for having Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test performance below average for their age. The Motor-Free Visual Perception Test and the Southern California Motor Accuracy Test were then administered to the children, and subgroups were identified who demonstrated no visual disabilities and/or no motor disabilities. These results were seen as supporting the existence of semiautonomous visual and motor systems. Using multiple regression analyses, the types of errors of reproduction, time to completion, and behavioral observations from the Bender Test were considered as predictors of visual perception and motor accuracy. Analyses were performed for the two age groups and two criterion variables separately. The number of integration errors was found to be the only significant predictor of both visual perception and motor accuracy for the six-year-old group and accounted for less than 15% of the variance in each criterion variable. Number of integration errors and the frequency of tracing the design with the finger were found to be significant predictors for the seven-year-old group and accounted for about 22% of the variance. There were no significant predictors of motor accuracy for the seven-year-old group. It was concluded that there is a need for differential diagnosis of visual vs. motor disabilities and for further investigations to determine valid methods. Suggestions for assessment and future research included use of clinical limits-testing procedures, development and refinement of test instruments, and consideration of additional variables in predicting visual perceptual and motor expressive ability.