ABSTRACT
Use of clinical observations during the assessment of preschool children is especially useful for supporting, explaining, or refuting test results. Examiners should triangulate detailed descriptions of testing behaviors and their interpretation, with data culled from the evaluation and referral information to support the utility of test scores, explain children’s variable test performance, and attest to the validity or invalidity of the overall test results. The focus of this chapter is on providing a comprehensive functional blueprint for conceptualizing behavioral observations that enrich the understanding of the preschool children and their test performance, with methodology to support behavioral inferences.
