The administration of standardized tests is an important method used by speech-language pathologists in the diagnosis of speech and language problems. Test validity is an important consideration in selecting a measurement tool. The construct validity, or trait measurement, of a test necessitates the accumulation of information from many sources. Correlation with other instruments is one 2 important procedure used to establish construct validity. The purpose of this investigation was to examine

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... he construct validity of a new test, which purports to measure morphology, entitled Test for Examining Expressive Morphology (TEEM) (Shipley, Stone and Sue, 1983) . Additional tests of expressive morphology, the Bankson Language Screening Test (BLST) (Bankson, 1977) and the Test of Language Development-Primary (TOLD-P) (Newcomer and Hammill, 1982) were utilized to determine the association of the TEEM with two highly-researched instruments. Seventy-two preschool, kindergarten, and first-grade children comprised the subjects of this study. All children were chosen randomly from the Portland metropolitan area public schools and preschools. Each subject demonstrated hearing within normal limits and exhibited normal voice quality, fluency, and overall intelligibility. The TEEM, the morphology section of the BLST, and Subtest V of the TOLD-P (Grammatic Completion) were administered to all subjects in one session. Results were recorded as raw scores for all three instruments. The Pearson pro~uct-moment correlation coefficient was used to analyze the raw scores collectively and by age group. Analysis of the data collectively revealed highmoderate correlations between the TEEM and the TOLD-P and between the TEEM and the BLST. With two high-moderate 3 correlations, the construct validity of the TEEM was supported. In addition, an overall high correlation was demonstrated by the BLST and the TOLD-P. Mean scores and standard deviations obtained on each instrument by age group revealed a considerable overlap between scores of all ages on the TEEM. Similarly, a considerable overlap between scores of preschool and kindergarten children was shown by both the BLST and the TOLD-P. Scores from the first-grade group did not overlap with younger groups on the BLST, but did overlap with the preschool group on the TOLD-P. Correlation coefficients by age group per instrument supported the construct validity of the TEEM. A stable, high-moderate association between the TEEM and the TOLD-P was shown for all age groups examined. Moderate correlations were also obtained between the TEEM and the BLST across ages. There appeared to be an undoubtedly high correlation between the BLST and the TOLD-P at the preschool level, but only moderate correlations were exhibited by these tests for the other ages. Although the results obtained on overlapping test items did not appear to significantly influence the overall correlations obtained, differences between morpheme categories tested may have been a factor affecting the outcome. Three additional considerations which may have 4 affected the outcome are: 1) fewer items administered to some subjects due to the ceiling suggested by the TOLD-P instruction manual, 2) examiner variability, and 3) test format variables, specifically the absence of visual input to accompany auditory stimuli on the TOLD-P. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS With great joy I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the many people who influenced my work on this thesis. First and foremost, a heartfelt thank you to Dr. Casteel for his expert guidance and the countless hours he spent with me reviewing and revising this manuscript. I am especially grateful for the emotional support he generously offered, not only during this project, but throughout my entire graduate program. It has been an honor and a privilege to study with him. A warm thanks is extended to the other members of my committee, Joan McMahon and Dr. Brannan. Their insights and valuable suggestions helped to refine this study. I particularly appreciated their support and warm congratulations at the conclusion of my orals. I also want to thank Dr. Grove for sharing his expertise in research design and statistical analysis and Jomar Lococo for her valuable suggestions during the initial stages of the study. To my close friends and study partners, Cheryl Dong and Cathy Pew--thanks not only for your input into this thesis, but for all the times we spent studying, sharing, and encouraging one another.