Comparing Three Patterns of Strengths and Weaknesses Models for the Identification of Specific Learning Disabilities

Processing Strengths and Weaknesses (PSW) models have been proposed as a method for identifying specific learning disabilities. Three PSW models were examined for their ability to predict expert identified specific learning disabilities cases. The Dual Discrepancy/Consistency Model (DD/C; Flanagan, Ortiz, & Alfonso, 2013) as operationalized by the Cross Battery Assessment Software (X-BASS; Ortiz, Flanagan & Alfonso, 2015), the Concordance-Discordance Model (C-DM; Hale & Fiorello, 2004), and the Psychological Processing Analyzer software (PPA v3.1; Dehn, 2015b) were evaluated. The DD/C approach as represented with the X-BASS system had a 100% agreement with the expert panel in the identification of specific learning disabilities and non-specific learning disabilities cases. The C-DM model was more conservative, identifying only 45% of the specific learning disabilities cases. The PPA software was too limited to be used in the study and is not recommended for use in identifying specific learning disabilities via a PSW approach. Although more research is needed, the results of this study would suggest that the DD/C and X-BASS provide the greatest utility for a PSW approach to identifying specific learning disabilities.