Ψlogical
Testing

Chapter 10
Intelligence (Part II)…
…the Wechsler Scales

🕸 🕸 House keeping 🕸 🕸

• Class Poll
  • Lab
  • Exam
  • Feedback
• 2 groups still need to submit draft 5 items

Note

Remember to e-mail me if you’d like to discuss exam-taking strategy

David Wechsler

Intelligence is…

…the capacity to:

• act purposefully
• think rationally
• deal effectively with one’s environment

“Nonintellective” factors

• factors other than intelligence that impact intelligent behavior
  • attitude
  • motivation
  • experience
  • emotional functioning

Competitor to Binet–Simon

• Wechsler–Bellevue Intelligence Scale (Wechsler, 1939)
  • adult–appropriate
  • TWO aggregate scores
    • nonverbal components (aka performance scale)
  • scoring (points per item)

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale(s)

Five¹ modern revisions to the 1939 original:

• WAIS (Wechsler, 1955)
• WAIS–R (Wechsler, 1981)
• WAIS III (Wechsler, 1997)
• WAIS IV (Wechsler, 2008)
• WAIS 5 (Wechsler et al., 2024)

1. Four at the time of the textbook publishing

The “Modern” WAIS

WAIS IV decided to measure separate abilities instead of one or two “global” constructs

• “g” results from an interplay of these specific abilities

WAIS terminology

• index
  • aggregation of subtests to multidimensional scale
• subtest
  • item groupings focused on unidimensional construct

Subscales (WAIS IV)

• Vocabulary
• Similarities
• Information

• Picture completion
• Block design
• Matrix reasoning

• Arithmetic
• Digit span
• Letter–number sequencing

• Digit symbol–coding
• Symbol search

Activity!!

…let’s take another test!!

• Mix of WAIS subtest item–types
  • timed (12-minutes)
  • more FUN!!! 🥳

Scoring

• raw subtest scores transformed to scale score with \(\mu\)=10 & \(\sigma\)=3
• index scores are summaries of the subtest scale scores
  • scaled to the typical \(\mu\)=100 & \(\sigma\)=15
• FSIQ a summary of index scores

Pattern analysis

• with multiple scales comes the opportunity to look for patterns across subtests or indexes
  • unique combinations of low and high scores
  • aka profile
• also very popular with MMPI & other clinical tests

Extensions of WAIS

• Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children
  • aka WISC 🧒
  • 6–17 yo
• Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence
  • aka WPPSI 👶
  • 2.5–8.5 yo

Factors other than intelligence that impact intelligent behavior are called…

• nonintellective
• unfortunate
• troublesome
• 🤬🤬🤬🤬

The most recent WAIS was published in…

• 2024
• 2014
• 2004
• 1994

Wechsler referred to his nonverbal aggregate as a/an ______________ scale

• performance
• behavior
• action
• personality

Patterns of performance across intelligence subscales form a…

• profile
• perspective
• point–of–view
• person

Which of these intelligence tests was historically focused on “g” as opposed to specific abilities?

• Stanford–Binet
• WAIS
• WAIS–R
• WISC

References

Wechsler, D. (1939). Wechsler–bellevue intelligence scale. New York: The Psychological Corporation.

Wechsler, D. (1955). Manual for the wechsler adult intelligence scale. New York: The Psychological Corporation.

Wechsler, D. (1981). WAIS–R: Wechsler adult intelligence scale–revised. New York: The Psychological Corporation.

Wechsler, D. (1997). Wechsler adult intelligence scale–third edition (WAIS–III). New York: The Psychological Corporation.

Wechsler, D. (2008). Wechsler adult intelligence scale–fourth edition (WAIS–IV). New York: The Psychological Corporation.

Wechsler, D., Raiford, S. E., & Presnell, K. (2024). Wechsler adult intelligence scale (5th ed.): Technical and interpretive manual. NCS Pearson.