Score Comparisons and Discrepancy Analysis Flashcards
7 cards from real WAIS practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Score Comparisons and Discrepancy Analysis flashcards as text
The General Ability Index (GAI) is composed of which two WAIS-IV index scores?
Answer: Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI) and Perceptual Reasoning Index (PRI)
The GAI is derived from the VCI and PRI subtests, providing an estimate of general intellectual ability that is less influenced by working memory and processing speed.
Why is the GAI preferred over the FSIQ when an examinee has a significant discrepancy between GAI and the Cognitive Proficiency Index (CPI)?
Answer: A large GAI–CPI discrepancy indicates that the FSIQ is not a valid unitary estimate of general intelligence
When GAI and CPI differ substantially, the FSIQ blends two dissimilar cognitive profiles into one number, making it a misleading summary; the GAI better represents reasoning and knowledge in those cases.
The Cognitive Proficiency Index (CPI) on the WAIS-IV is derived from which two index scores?
Answer: Working Memory Index (WMI) and Processing Speed Index (PSI)
The CPI combines WMI and PSI to measure cognitive efficiency—how quickly and accurately an individual manipulates and processes information.
Regression to the mean is an important consideration in WAIS-IV discrepancy analysis because:
Answer: Predicted achievement scores derived from ability scores must account for the fact that extreme ability scores overestimate expected achievement
Because of imperfect test-criterion correlations, predicting achievement from an extreme ability score (very high or very low) requires adjusting toward the mean to avoid over- or under-predicting performance.
When comparing WAIS-IV index scores in older adults (ages 65–90), clinicians must be especially cautious because:
Answer: Normal age-related declines in PSI and WMI can make discrepancies appear clinically significant when they reflect typical aging
Processing speed and working memory decline with normal aging, so a PSI or WMI that is lower than VCI may reflect typical developmental change rather than pathology in older adults.
A clinician finds that an examinee's four WAIS-IV index scores range from 72 to 112 (a 40-point spread). The recommended interpretive approach is to:
Answer: Interpret each index score separately rather than relying on the FSIQ as a meaningful overall summary
When index scores are highly variable, the FSIQ obscures important within-person differences; clinicians should interpret each index on its own merits to give an accurate picture of cognitive strengths and weaknesses.
Which statistical concept explains why an examinee with a very high VCI is likely to show a lower PRI even without any true cognitive weakness in visuospatial reasoning?
Answer: Regression to the mean
Regression to the mean predicts that scores on a second, correlated measure will be less extreme than the first; a very high VCI score statistically predicts a PRI closer to the mean, even without genuine weakness.