Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test Scores of Preschool Children

Two groups of preschool Negro children of poor parents were administered the PPVT, SB and other linguistic and perceptual-motor measures. Since the PPVT score was consistently lower than the SB, it was concluded that this test may be more susceptible to environmental impoverishment than the SB. Substandard performance on the PPVT was discussed in terms of (a) a cumulative deficiency in storage and/or retrieval of verbal terms and (b) an inefficiency in sustaining the correct mental set required in the multiple-choice format of the PPVT.