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Judgment of Line Orientation (Benton JLO)
Availability
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Classification
NeuroRehab Supplemental - Highly Recommended
Recommendations for Use: Indicated for studies requiring a measure for visuospatial judgment.
 
It is not recommended for use in individuals whose vision is not sufficient to see the stimuli.
 
Supplemental: Mitochondrial Disease (Mito)
 
Short Description of Instrument
The Judgment of Line Orientation (JLO) is a 30-item test of visuospatial perception that is commonly administered in neuropsychological assessment. (Benton, Varney et al., 1978; Benton, et al., 1983)
 
The JLO is presented in flip-book style where two lines appear at the top page and a standard fan-shaped array of 11 lines appear at the bottom. Examinees must identify the two lines from the bottom page that match the angles of the two lines of the top page. Forms H and V, the two standard versions of the JLO, contain the same test items but are presented in different sequences. (Spenser et al., 2013)
 
Comments/Special Instructions
NeuroRehab Specific: This test has adequate norms and is used commonly as part of a neuropsychological evaluation.
Scoring and Psychometric Properties
Scoring: A response is scored as being correct only when both lines are identified correctly.
 
Psychometric Properties: The JLO test has been widely used in neuropsychological practice for decades. The test has a high test-retest reliability (Franzen, 2000), as well as good neuropsychological construct validity as shown through neuroanatomical localization studies (Tranel, et al., 2009).
Rationale/Justification
Strengths/ Weaknesses:
The information provided by the full-length JLO is offset by administration times that can last up to 15 minutes and be frustrating, particularly for older participants. Two studies (Strauss, et al., 2006; Spencer et al., 2013) reported on the internal consistency data for the full version of the JLO and its short forms. However, other studies have shown that the validity of the short forms is undermined by a left-right structural asymmetry that interacts with the ipsilesional attentional biases of brain-damaged participants. (Treccani and Cubelli, 2019) These studies show that the JLO is successful in detecting visuospatial deficits that follow cerebral lesions in the right hemisphere and poorer performance on the JLO than in individuals with left hemisphere brain damage. (Benton et al., 1978; Hamsher et al., 1992; Tranel et al, 2009)
 
NeuroRehab-Specific
Strengths: High test-retest reliability; small practice effects; adequate norms; does not require a motor response; can be used in adults and children; alternate forms available (same items, different order); pure measure of visuospatial judgment.
 
Weaknesses: Administration can be up to 15 minutes in older adults; limited norms for age 75+; can have ceiling effects in participants without spatial difficulties.
References
Key References:
Benton AL, Varney NR, Hams her KD. Visuospatial judgment. A clinical test. Arch Neurol. 1978 Jun;35(6):364-7.
 
Benton AL, Hamsher K, Varney N, Spreen O. Contributions to Neuropsychological Assessment: A Clinical Manual. New York: Oxford University Press; 1983.
 
Benton AL, Sivan AB, Hamsher K, Varney NR, Spreen O. Contributions to Neuropsychological Assessment: A Clinical Manual. 2nd Ed. New York: Oxford University Press; 1994.
 
Additional References:
Adams N. Contributions to Neuropsychological Assessment: A Clinical Manual, 2nd Ed. Neurology.1995 Aug;45(8):1637-1637a.
 
Benton A, Hannay HJ, Varney NR. Visual perception of line direction in patients with unilateral brain disease. Neurology. 1975 Oct;25(10):907-10.
 
Calami a M, Markon K, Denburg NL, Tranel D. Developing a short form of Benton's Judgment of Line Orientation Test: an item response theory approach. Clin Neuropsychol. 2011 May;25(4):670-84.
 
Frazen, M. Reliability and Validity in Neuropsychological Assessment. 2 Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers: New York; 2000.
 
Hamsher K, Capruso DX, Benton A. Visuospatial judgment and right hemisphere disease. Cortex. 1992 Sep;28(3):493-5.
 
Mount DL, Hogg J, Johnstone B. Applicability of the 15-item versions of the Judgement of Line Orientation Test for individuals with traumatic brain injury. Brain Inj. 2002 Dec;16(12):1051-5.
 
Spencer RJ, Wendell CR, Giggey PP, Seliger SL, Katzel LI, Waldstein SR. Judgment of Line Orientation: an examination of eight short forms. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol. 2013;35(2):160-6.
 
Strauss E, Sherman EMS, Spreen O. Compendium of Neuropsychological Tests: Administration, Norms, and Commentary. New York: Oxford University Press; 2006.
 
Tranel D, Vianna E, Manzel K, Damasio H, Grabowski T. Neuroanatomical correlates of the Benton Facial Recognition Test and Judgment of Line Orientation Test. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol. 2009 Feb;31(2):219-33.
 
Treccani B, Cubelli R. Spatial asymmetries undermine also the short forms of the Judgement of Line Orientation test. Neuropsychology. 2019 Mar;33(3):301-8.
 
Venderploeg RD, LaLone LV, Greblo P, Schinka JA. Odd-even short forms of the Judgment of Line Orientation Test. Appl Neuropsychol. 1997;4(4):244-6.
 
Winegarden BJ, Yates BL, Moses JA, Benton AL, Faustman WO. Development of an optimally reliable short form for Judgment of Line Orientation. Clin Neuropsychol. 1998;12(3):311-4.
 
Winegarden BJ, Yates BL, Moses JA, Faustman WO. Development, validity and reliability analysis of short-forms of three Bentonian perceptual tests. Arch Clin Neuropsychol. 1997 May;12(4):430-1.
 
Woodard JL, Benedict RH, Salthouse TA, Toth JP, Zgaljardic DJ, Hancock HE. Normative data for equivalent, parallel forms of the Judgment of Line Orientation Test. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol. 1998 Aug;20(4):457-62.
 
Woodard JL, Benedict RH, Roberts VJ, Goldstein FC, Kinner KM, Capruso DX, Clark AN. Short-form alternatives to the Judgment of Line Orientation Test. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol. 1996 Dec;18(6):898-904.
 
Document last updated March 2024