[The Kaufman Test System during adolescence: structure and application of the Kaufman-Test zur Intelligenzmessung (K-TIM)].

Objective: The Kaufman-Test zur Intelligenzmessung (K-TIM) is the German-language adaptation of the Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test, serving the sophisticated assessment of intellectual abilities within the age range from 11 to over 85 years. Founded on the respective models of cognitive development by Horn and Cattell, Luria, and Piaget, the battery comprises 10 subtests, structured into fluid intelligence, crystallized intelligence, and assessment of delayed recall, reflecting the test concept.

Method: In addition to early trials during the translation and adaptation as well as the novel construction of items with a high verbal or cultural load, studies to evaluate test criteria were performed stepwise. Norms for the final version were developed using a sample of 2,320 persons from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and South Tyrol. Also, test criteria were analyzed again.

Results: Test reliability was very high (.96 to .98 for the scales). Validity of the developmental criterion important in adolescence, and that of the construct criterion was ensured by means of correlational and factor analyses. Concurrent validity was confirmed using correlational studies with other tests as external criteria.

Conclusions: The adaptation did not result in any structural changes within the test concept. For the German-speaking countries as well the K-TIM is thus an interesting alternative to the differential assessment of intelligence in adolescents.