Use of the K‐ABC with Children in Zaire, Africa: An Evaluation of the Sequential‐Simultaneous Processing Distinction within an Intercultural Context

There is a continuing need for formalised assessment procedures that can be adapted for group comparisons across diverse cultures to facilitate school and occupational placement, as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of nutritional, education, and medical intervention programs. This study used a direct translation of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K‐ABC) to evaluate 130 Zairian primary school children. The distinction between Sequential Processing and Simultaneous Processing abilities on the K‐ABC was generally found to be valid in this sample. The K‐ABC also discriminated effectively among grade levels, differences in health and family environment indicators, and tribal membership. Reasonable test‐retest correlations for the K‐ABC global scales were also found with a subsample of the children. The Zairian children's K‐ABC scores, particularly for the Simultaneous subtests, were markedly lower than the American normative sample. Education and experiential factors inherent in the sub‐Sahara environment may put these children at a significant cultural disadvantage in terms of the skills required for successful completion of K‐ABC items.