Evaluating the role of education and acculturation in the performance of Hispanics on a non-verbal test

In the effort to be "culture sensitive," many psychologists have advocated in favor of using cultural-free assessment instruments. Practitioners have also suggested that some non-verbal tests could be used across cultures without significantly influencing the interpretation of results. Among Hispanics, level of acculturation and level of education are two factors that affect the individual's performance in assessment. Non-verbal tests, especially those that use pictorial representation, are not necessarily exempt from cultural bias. The Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM) is an easy non-verbal test that utilizes line drawings to assess effort. In this study, the TOMM has been administered to a group of 120 foreign-born Hispanics who have different levels of education and acculturation. Findings suggest that education plays a major role in the performance on the test, especially for those individuals who are low educated, and have not been significantly exposed to the host culture. Caution is recommended when using non-verbal tests that have not been normed for Hispanic populations.; Keywords. Hispanic, Latino/a, culture, assessment, cross-cultural, non-verbal, malingering, education.