WAIS Administration Rules 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: On the WAIS-IV Coding subtest, what happens if the examinee skips an item?
- The skipped item is scored as 0 and the examinee continues
- The examiner must redirect the examinee to complete items in order (Correct answer)
- Skipping is allowed and does not affect the score
- The subtest is discontinued after any skip
Correct answer: The examiner must redirect the examinee to complete items in order
Examinees must complete Coding items in order; the examiner redirects them if they skip an item, as the normative scoring assumes sequential completion.
Question 2: Which of the following correctly describes the start point for most WAIS-IV subtests when testing adults aged 16–90?
- Always start at Item 1
- Start at the item designated for the examinee's age in the manual (Correct answer)
- Start midway through the subtest
- Start at the item where the previous examinee left off
Correct answer: Start at the item designated for the examinee's age in the manual
WAIS-IV subtests specify age-based start points so that younger and older adults begin at appropriately challenging items.
Question 3: If a WAIS-IV examiner suspects that an examinee has a hearing impairment, what is the recommended course of action?
- Administer the test as standardized with no modifications
- Document the concern and consider referring for audiological evaluation before testing (Correct answer)
- Speak louder and repeat all instructions twice
- Omit all verbal subtests and prorate the score
Correct answer: Document the concern and consider referring for audiological evaluation before testing
Suspected hearing impairment should be documented and the examinee referred for appropriate evaluation, as standard administration conditions may not be valid.
Question 4: On the WAIS-IV Letter-Number Sequencing subtest, what exactly is the examinee asked to do with a mixed sequence of letters and numbers?
- Repeat the sequence exactly as heard
- Say the numbers first in ascending order, then the letters in alphabetical order (Correct answer)
- Say the letters first alphabetically, then numbers in descending order
- Repeat the numbers in ascending order only, ignoring letters
Correct answer: Say the numbers first in ascending order, then the letters in alphabetical order
The examinee must reorder the sequence by stating numbers in ascending order first, followed by letters in alphabetical order.
Question 5: What is the correct procedure when an examinee earns the maximum score on the first two administered items of a subtest (the reverse rule criterion)?
- Continue administering all earlier items anyway
- Credit all items before the start point and continue forward (Correct answer)
- Discontinue and move to the next subtest
- Return to Item 1 and administer every item
Correct answer: Credit all items before the start point and continue forward
When the reverse rule criterion is met (perfect scores on the first two administered items), all earlier items are credited and the examiner continues forward.
Question 6: On the WAIS-IV Visual Puzzles subtest, how long does the examinee have to respond to each item?
- 10 seconds
- 20 seconds
- 30 seconds (Correct answer)
- 45 seconds
Correct answer: 30 seconds
Each Visual Puzzles item has a 30-second time limit, after which the examiner records a score of 0 if no response has been given.
Question 7: Under standardized WAIS-IV administration, which of the following is NOT permitted during testing?
- Providing verbal encouragement such as 'You're doing well'
- Reading stimulus items aloud for all subtests (Correct answer)
- Recording verbatim responses in the Record Form
- Querying unclear responses with neutral prompts
Correct answer: Reading stimulus items aloud for all subtests
Examiners should not read aloud the visual stimulus items (e.g., Matrix Reasoning, Visual Puzzles) as these are designed to be administered visually.
WAIS Administration Rules 3
On the WAIS-IV Coding subtest, what happens if the examinee skips an item?