WAIS Processing Speed Index (PSI) 2 ā Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which WAIS-IV subtest requires the examinee to scan a row of symbols and mark specific target symbols?
- Symbol Search (Correct answer)
- Coding
- Cancellation
- Visual Puzzles
Correct answer: Symbol Search
Symbol Search asks examinees to scan a search group and indicate whether target symbols appear within it.
Question 2: The PSI is most sensitive to neurological conditions because processing speed is closely linked to:
- Crystallized intelligence
- White matter integrity and neural efficiency (Correct answer)
- Long-term memory consolidation
- Verbal working memory capacity
Correct answer: White matter integrity and neural efficiency
Processing speed depends heavily on white matter tract efficiency, making it sensitive to neurological disruption.
Question 3: On the WAIS-IV, a PSI composite score is derived from how many subtests?
- One
- Two (Correct answer)
- Three
- Four
Correct answer: Two
The PSI is composed of two core subtests: Coding and Symbol Search.
Question 4: A 45-year-old shows a large discrepancy between a high VCI and a low PSI. Which explanation is LEAST likely?
- Early-stage dementia affecting processing speed
- Fine motor slowing unrelated to cognition
- Higher verbal crystallized knowledge accumulated over time
- Innate low verbal ability (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Innate low verbal ability
A high VCI indicates strong verbal ability, making innate low verbal ability the least plausible explanation for the pattern.
Question 5: Which factor does the Cancellation subtest measure that Coding does NOT primarily emphasize?
- Graphomotor speed
- Visual scanning and selective attention (Correct answer)
- Paired-associate learning
- Auditory processing
Correct answer: Visual scanning and selective attention
Cancellation emphasizes random and structured visual scanning with selective attention to targets, beyond the graphomotor component of Coding.
Question 6: PSI scores tend to show the steepest age-related decline beginning around which decade of life?
- 20s
- 30s
- 50sā60s (Correct answer)
- 70sā80s
Correct answer: 50sā60s
Processing speed begins a more pronounced decline in the 50sā60s, accelerating further into older adulthood.
Question 7: In the WAIS standardization sample, which group consistently earns the highest average PSI scores?
- Adults aged 65ā69
- Adults aged 20ā24 (Correct answer)
- Adults aged 45ā54
- Adults aged 75ā90
Correct answer: Adults aged 20ā24
Young adults aged 20ā24 show peak processing speed performance in normative WAIS data.
WAIS Processing Speed Index (PSI) 2
Which WAIS-IV subtest requires the examinee to scan a row of symbols and mark specific target symbols?