Assessment Battery for Communication: Development of two equivalent forms

The aim of this paper was to develop and test two equivalent forms of the Assessment Battery for Communication (ABaCo), a tool for evaluating pragmatic abilities in patients with neuropsychological and psychiatric disorders. The equivalent forms were created using the data from a sample of 390 children, then tested in a sample of 30 patients with traumatic brain injury. Equivalent forms of the same test are useful in clinical practice and intervention research, when performance needs to be tested on two separate occasions, for example before and after a rehabilitation program. The present results provide additional evidence on the psychometric functioning of the equivalent forms of the ABaCo and their usability in a clinical context.Learning outcomes: The reader will be able to discuss the evidence of the psychometric propriety of the equivalent forms of the ABaCo and describe its potential usefulness.

► The equivalent forms of the ABaCo are a new useful clinical tool. ► Alternative forms of the same test are necessary to measure the efficacy of a therapy. ► The ABaCo is the first tool for assessing communicative deficits available in two equivalent forms. ► The ABaCo provided evidence of the psychometric propriety of the equivalent test. ► The equivalent forms of the ABaCo are validated on two different subject populations.