WAIS III

WAIS: A Historical Perspective

⚫Wechsler-Bellevue 1939
⚫Wechsler-Bellevue II 1946
⚫WAIS 1955
⚫WAIS-R 1981
⚫WAIS-III 1997
⚫WAIS-IV 2008
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)
⚫Published in 1997
⚫developed for use with individuals aged 16
through 89
⚫takes 60 to 90 minutes to administer
⚫Subject receives a certain # of points for
each item answered correctly.
⚫The WAIS is used
in neuropsychological evaluation, specifically
with regard to brain dysfunction. Large
differences in verbal and nonverbal intelligence
may indicate specific types of brain damage.
⚫The WAIS is also administered for diagnostic
purposes. Intelligence quotient (IQ) scores
reported by the WAIS can be used as part of
the diagnostic criteria for mental retardation
, specific learning disabilities, and attention-
deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
WAIS–III Subtests for IQ Scores
Verbal Performance
▪ Vocabulary
▪ Picture Completion
▪ Similarities
▪ Digit Symbol—Coding
▪ Arithmetic
▪ Block Design
▪ Digit Span

▪ Matrix Reasoning
▪ Information

▪ Comprehension
▪ Picture Arrangement
Verbal Comprehension Index
Vocabulary
⚫ A list of up to 33 words is presented, both orally and in
writing (range from concrete to abstract).

⚫ The subject must explain or define the meaning of the word.

⚫ Factor analysis: loads on Verbal Comprehension

⚫ Measures: language development and word knowledge

⚫ Also affected by: cultural opportunities, foreign language

background, interests, outside reading, school learning
Similarities

⚫ Subject responds to open-ended questions by telling how two things are

alike.

⚫ Corresponds best to Spearman’s idea that ability to see relations is critical

indicator of g.
⚫ Factor analysis: loads on Verbal Comprehension

⚫ Measures: logical abstractive (categorical) thinking

⚫ Also affected by: flexibility, interests, negativism “they’re not alike”,

overly concrete thinking

⚫ Of verbal tests, least affected by specific learning and experience

Information
⚫ Includes items covering knowledge of general information
that an adult in our culture could reasonable be expected to
acquire (not supposed to be specialized or academic)

⚫ Example: “Who was Abraham Lincoln?”

⚫ Factor analysis: loads on Verbal Comprehension

⚫ Measures range of factual knowledge

⚫ Also affected by: alertness to environment, cultural

opportunities, interests, outside reading, school learning
Comprehension

⚫ Open-ended questions asking subject to explain why certain things should

be done or by describing what he/she would do in certain situations

⚫ Example: Why are votes often taken via secret ballot?

⚫ Factor analysis: loads on Verbal Comprehension

⚫ Measures: demonstration of practical information, use of past experience,

generalization, knowledge of conventional standards of behavior, social
maturity, judgment

⚫ Also affected by: cultural opportunities, moral development, negativism,

overly concrete thinking
 Working Memory Index
Arithmetic

⚫ Set of problems that can be solved without pencil & paper; presented orally

⚫ Thought of as a reasoning test, not test of quantitative performance test

⚫ Example: How many inches are in 4 feet?

⚫ Factor Analysis: Loads on Working Memory

⚫ Measures: computational skill, quantitative reasoning, mathematical

achievement

⚫ Affected by: Attention span, anxiety, concentration, distractibility, learning

disabilities, school learning and working under time pressure
Digit Span
⚫ Examiner reads aloud list of 2 to 9 digits that subject must repeat.

⚫ Subjects must repeat list in order and reverse order.

⚫ Factor analysis: loads on working memory

⚫ Measures: immediate rote recall, memory span, reversibility

⚫ Also affected by: attention span, anxiety, distractibility, flexibility,

learning disabilities, negativism
 Letter-Number Sequencing
⚫ Examiner presents series of letters and numbers in a mixed up
order and subject is to repeat list saying numbers first in order,
then letters in order

⚫ Example: X-4-B-2-H-1-C → 1-2-4-B-C-H-X

⚫ Measures: facility with over-learned sequences, working memory

⚫ Also affected by: attention span, anxiety, concentration,

distractibility, flexibility, illiteracy/dyslexia, ADHD, negativism,
persistence
Perceptual organization Index
Picture Completion

⚫ Shown pictures in which critical detail is missing and

subject must tell what is missing in the picture.

⚫ Factor Analysis: loads on Processing Speed

⚫ Measures: flexibility of closure, visual alertness, visual

recognition and identification (long-term visual memory)

⚫ Also affected by: Ability to respond when uncertain,

alertness to environment, concentration, negativism,
working under time pressure
Block Design
⚫ A set of 9 pictures with geometric designs in red and white
corresponds to set of blocks. Subject must arrange 4 – 9
blocks to duplicate pictures.

⚫ Measure of non-verbal intelligence

⚫ Factor Analysis: Perceptual Organization

⚫ Measures: analysis of whole into component parts, nonverbal

concept formation, spatial visualization

⚫ Also affected by: visual-perceptual problems, working under

time pressure
Matrix Reasoning
⚫ Another new subtest, in which subjects identify recurring
patterns or relationships between figural stimuli

⚫ Factor Analysis: loads on Perceptual Organization

⚫ Measures: analogic reasoning, induction, nonverbal

problem solving without time limit

⚫ Also affected by: ability to respond when uncertain, color

blindness, flexibility, motivation level, negativism, overly
concrete thinking, persistence, visual-perceptual problem
 Processing Speed Index
Digit Symbol Coding
⚫ Code substitution test: one of oldest, best established psychological tests

⚫ A subject is given a code sheet that pairs nine symbols (e.g., #) with digits. The
subject is given a list of 133 digits and, using the code sheet, is required to
substitute the appropriate symbol for each digit. Strictly timed test (2 minutes)

⚫ Factor Analysis: loads on Processing Speed

⚫ Measures: ability to follow directions, clerical speed and accuracy,

psychomotor speed, visual short-term memory

⚫ Also affected by: anxiety, compulsive concern for accuracy and detail,
distractibility, persistence, working under time pressure
Picture Arrangement

⚫ Given set of 3 to 6 cards, which when arranged in

proper order tell a story. Cards presented out of
sequence and subject is to arrange in proper order.

⚫ Factor Analysis: loads on Perceptual Organization

⚫ Measures: anticipation of consequences, planning

ability, temporal sequencing and time concepts

⚫ Also affected by: creativity, cultural opportunities,

exposure to comic strips, working under time pressur
Symbol Search
⚫ New subtest in which subjects scan a series of paired groups of
symbols, with each pair consisting of a target group and a
search group. The subject's task is to indicate, as quickly as
possible, whether the target symbol also appears in the search
group.

⚫ Factor Analysis: loads on Processing Speed

⚫ Measures: speed of visual search, perceptual speed

⚫ Also affected by: anxiety, distractibility, ADHD, motivation level,

obsessive concern with accuracy and detail, persistence, visual-
perceptual problems, working under time pressure
Object Assembly
⚫Flat cardboard representations of common objects cut up
to make puzzle – assembled by subject

⚫Measures: closure speed, ability to benefit from sensory-

motor feedback, anticipation of relationships among parts

⚫Also affected by: ability to respond when uncertain,

experience with puzzles, flexibility, persistence
 Administration
The WAIS-III consists of 14 subtests

⚫ Given individually by a trained examiner

⚫ Subtests given one at a time, alternating between verbal and performance tests

⚫ Items arranged from easy to difficult

⚫ Reversal rules – if don’t pass first item, administer preceding items in reverse
order until 3 in a row are passed
Scoring
⚫Each subtest produces a raw score – i.e., a
total number of points – and has a different
maximum total – e.g., vocabulary has 33
items, scored 0, 1 or 2 for a maximum of 66
points
⚫raw score for each subtest (total no. of
points) is converted to a scaled score with a
mean of 10 and a standard deviation of 3
⚫there are separate norms for ages.
Scaled score equivalents of raw scores: 20
to 24 year old norms
Verbal IQ Score
⚫to obtain a verbal IQ score, 6 of the 7 verbal
scaled scores are summed (letter-number
sequencing is not included)
⚫then a table formed from a standardization
sample of individuals from all groups used to
get verbal IQ
⚫resultant IQ is a deviation IQ with a mean of
100 and s.d. of 15
Performance IQ Score
⚫To obtain a performance IQ score, 5 of the 7
performance scaled scores are summed
(symbol search & object assembly not
included)
⚫then a table formed from a standardization
sample of individuals from all groups used to
get performance IQ
⚫resultant IQ is a deviation IQ with a mean of
100 and s.d. of 15
Full-Scale IQ Score
⚫to obtain full-scale IQ, sum scaled scores of
11 verbal and performance non-optional
subtests, and use table based on
standardization sample
Subtest Modifications in WAIS-IV
⚫ • 4 Subtests Dropped
⚫ – Object Assembly, Picture Arrangement, Coding
⚫ Recall (Digit Symbol-Incidental Learning), and Coding
⚫ Copy (Digit Symbol-Copy)
⚫ • 12 Subtests Retained with Modifications
⚫ – Similarities, Vocabulary, Information,
⚫ Comprehension
⚫ – Block Design, Matrix Reasoning, Picture Completion
⚫ – Digit Span, Arithmetic, Letter-Number Sequencing
⚫ – Symbol Search, Coding
⚫ •3 New Subtests
⚫ – Visual Puzzles, Figure Weights, Cancellation