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Confirmatory factor analyses of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition, were undertaken.

The current status of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality INventory-2 with Asian American is considered.

The use of updated versions of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised and the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised, in clinical and neuropsychology, is examined.

Memory weaknesses and strengths can be interpreted by use of age-adjusted scores from the Wechsler Memory Scale-III (WMS) test. Tables are presented which facilitate the interpretation of the WMS-III scores.

Previous studies have indicated that alcoholics with low learning potential perform more poorly on the Finnish WAIS Block Design than on the Digit Symbol. These alcoholics had deficits in mediated functions but not in elementary functions. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between these subtests in a larger group of alcoholics. A total of 179 Finnish alcoholics took part. A clear asymmetry was found between the tests, the Block Design being poorer than the Digit Symbol. The results are discussed in terms of basic questions concerning the nature and course of impairment.

The K-FAST and K-SNAP, two new brief cognitive measures designed for adolescents and adults, were validated against another brief measure - a four-subtest short form of the WAIS - R - using a sample of 20 adult patients hospitalized for depression. Data supported the validity of these two new instruments.

Intersubtest scatter values for the Full, Verbal, and Performance Scales of the WAIS--R were estimated for a sample of 163 psychiatric inpatients and compared with those reported for the WAIS--R standardization group using the normal deviate (z) test. Intersubtest scatter was assessed using the range and the Profile Variability Index. Results were surprising and conflicted with what was expected based on the clinical literature. First, in comparison to the standardization group, the psychiatric inpatients showed significantly more intersubtest scatter on the Verbal Scale only, while Performance Scale values were comparable. Second, the psychiatric inpatient sample, as a group, showed identical amounts of scatter on the Verbal and Performance Scales. Results suggest that the interpretation of intersubtest scatter as a sign of psychopathology should be avoided., The intersubtest scatter test, in its first phase of comparison to the standardization group, revealed that psychiatric inpatients showed considerable intersubtest scatter on the Verbal Scale with which the results on the Performance Scale value were compared. As a group, the psychiatric inpatient sample revealed similar scattering on the Verbal and Performance Scales. The results of intersubtest scatter, which was ascertained using Profile Variability Index, showed that its interpretation should not include any indications of psychopathology.

This study was undertaken to determine the ability of the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R) to differentiate a group of closed head injury patients from a group of controls and determine how injury severity and attentional deficits are associated with WMS-R performance. The relationship of WMS-R performance to everyday memory also was assessed. The head injured group performed more poorly than controls on all five WMS-R indices and exhibited greater impairments on tasks that measure retention. In the original sample only the Visual Memory Index correlated with injury severity; in a larger sample, all four memory indices correlated modestly with injury severity. Patients who performed more poorly on the WMS-R also received poorer ratings on an independent assessment of everyday memory.

WAIS profiles of 50 acute closed head-injured patients were examined and compared with those of 40 psychiatric inpatients. Patients with moderate and severe, but not with mild, head injury differed significantly from the control group on level of subtest performance. There was no significant interaction of group by subtest. The groups also differed significantly on a measure of between-subtest scatter. Discriminant function analysis incorporating measures of within-subtest scatter correctly classified 89% of all subjects. Within the head-injured group Similarities and Block Design scores were elevated, and the Digit Symbol score depressed. These results indicate that closed head-injured patients can be discriminated from psychiatric inpatients on the basis of WAIS performance, but that they do not necessarily show a characteristic WAIS profile. Within-subtest scatter may indicate information-processing deficits.

Intrasubtest scatter values for eight WAIS - R subtests were estimated for a sample of 150 psychiatric inpatients and compared with those reported for a comparable portion of the WAIS - R standardization group by Kaplan, Fein, Morris, and Delis in 1991, using the normal deviate (z) test. The standardization group's intrasubtest scatter was significantly greater than those reported for the psychiatric inpatients on all subtests except Arithmetic and Information. These results suggested that, contrary to expectation, limited intrasubtest scatter may characterize WAIS - R protocols of psychiatric inpatients, while the presence of scatter may characterize normal WAIS - R performance.

The relationship between neurocognitive functioning and length of stay in drug-free therapeutic communities (TCs) was investigated. The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) was administered to 495 patients admitted to a therapeutic community. It was hypothesized that Digit Symbol and Block Design, which have been found to be more sensitive to diffuse neuropsychological impairment than other WAIS subtests, would be significant predictors of length of stay. A hierarchical regression analysis was performed, and both subtests were found to be predictive of time-in-residence. These findings are congruent with recent investigations that have found a relationship between cognitive impairment and treatment process and outcome in substance abuse treatment.

The relationship between personality and intelligence test performance among 84 psychiatric patients was examined using a reduced version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale together with the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Introverts were inclined to do better than extraverts on all WAIS scales, the difference being statistically significant for the verbal subtests of Information and Similarities only. A 2-way multivariate analysis of variance gave a significant main effect for Social Conformity, in which low Lie scorers obtained higher scores on all subscales, particularly Verbal IQ. There was no main effect for Psychoticism but there were two interactions (Psychoticism x Lie) for the verbal subscales. For individuals characterized by high social conformity, the high Psychoticism scores displayed lower scores on those scales associated with sensory associative intelligence (Information, Similarities, and Picture Completion). The results were discussed with particular reference to two competing theories relating personality and intelligence.

Gender comparisons on the WAIS-R were made for 1,480 adults from the standardization sample, ages 20-74 years, to determine whether men and women differ in their age-related patterns of change on tests of fluid and crystallized abilities. Multivariate analyses of covariance and univariate analyses of covariance were conducted, covarying education, to examine the age + gender interactions. These interactions tended to be nonsignificant and trivial for the WAIS-R Verbal and Performance scales and the 11 subtests, which suggests that both men and women maintain their crystallized abilities through old age, but show early, rapid declines in fluid ability. These results were interpreted in terms of the literature on aging and intelligence, gender differences in cognitive abilities, and gender differences in V-P patterns for patients with unilateral brain damage.

Use of the Modified WAIS--R described by Cella in 1984 with psychiatric inpatients was criticized on several grounds. First, the modification did not accurately identify areas of relative cognitive strength and weakness. An accuracy rate of 49% was considered unacceptable for interpretation of individual profiles, the task the WAIS--RM was originally designed to perform. Second, use of the WAIS--RM does not significantly reduce total administration time. For the majority of 70 psychiatric inpatients, at least 80% of the WAIS--R items would be administered, resulting in saving just fifteen minutes. Finally, an inpatient's confidence and motivation to perform well could be compromised by skipping earlir, easier items. Administration of the full WAIS--R battery is recommended if a discussion of relative strengths and weaknesses is desired.

16 normal women (age 25 to 80 years) who could remember more numbers on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Forward Digit Span subtest had significantly longer mean latency for the auditory event-related potential P3 waveform than those persons who could remember fewer numbers.

For 29 college students (6 men, 23 women) who passively viewed in each of 6 blocks both the Schroeder stair and the Necker cube for 3 min. apiece with one 3-min. rest between viewings, their frequency of reversals, sex, GPA, scores on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Information subtest, the two-dimensional Test 8, and the three-dimensional Test 9 of the Multiple Aptitude Test, measuring spatial ability, and three curiosity measures--the Which-to-Discuss Test, the Maze test, and the Ontario Test of Intrinsic Motivation--were not significantly correlated by Pearson's method with the number of ambiguous figure reversals.