Adaptation and Standardization of a Language Skills Test on Greek-Cypriot Population

One of the most important skills that humans develop is language. Since some children might not develop linguistic proficiency following the formal pattern, early diagnosis of language difficulties so as to provide immediate intervention is imperative. Taking into consideration the lack of tools assessing the language competence in Greek language, the aim of current research was the adaptation and standardization of a language skills test in the Cypriot population, which was based on the development and standardization principles of the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-4 test (CELF-4). Data were obtained from 332 children aged 5-9 years old with typical language development, whose both parents have Greek as their native language. Participants were matched according their gender and age and they were selected based on the proportion of the Cypriot population in urban and rural areas of Cyprus. The results of the variance analyses on the sum of the ratings of the subtests in each age group as well as on the indicators that can be extracted from the combination of appropriate subtests showed a statistically significant linear trend as a result of the effect of increasing age on every subtest except two. Furthermore, the subtests had good internal cohesion reliability and stability. Correlational analyses were carried out between the subtests and the indicators they contribute to resulting in moderate to high levels of correlation. In conclusion, the test seems to have good features and characteristics and with further processing it could be utilized for the identification and diagnosis of children with language difficulties.