Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV) Clinical Applications Flashcards
7 cards from real Wechsler Test practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV) Clinical Applications flashcards as text
A referral asks whether a patient's cognitive profile is consistent with an attention disorder. The WAIS-IV alone can best contribute by:
Answer: Showing relative weaknesses in Working Memory or Processing Speed as supporting data
The WAIS-IV can reveal WMI/PSI weaknesses that support, but do not by themselves diagnose, an attention disorder.
Which practice best supports the validity of WAIS-IV results across repeated assessments?
Answer: Accounting for practice effects and using appropriate retest intervals
Practice effects can inflate retest scores, so clinicians should consider them and use adequate intervals.
A patient's performance is strong on all subtests except Comprehension, which is notably low. Comprehension weakness may reflect difficulty with:
Answer: Practical reasoning and understanding of social conventions
Comprehension taps practical reasoning and social/conventional understanding.
When a WAIS-IV score conflicts sharply with a patient's known real-world functioning, the clinician should first:
Answer: Consider validity factors such as effort, mood, and testing conditions
Discrepancies between scores and functioning warrant reviewing validity factors before drawing conclusions.
Which combination of subtests forms the core Verbal Comprehension Index?
Answer: Similarities, Vocabulary, Information
The core VCI subtests are Similarities, Vocabulary, and Information.
In a forensic evaluation, embedded and standalone validity checks are used alongside WAIS-IV to:
Answer: Assess whether the performance reflects genuine effort
Validity/effort measures help determine whether cognitive performance is credible, which is critical in forensic settings.
A clinician interpreting an elderly patient's below-average Processing Speed Index should remember that:
Answer: Processing speed typically declines with age and norms are age-adjusted
Processing speed declines with normal aging, and WAIS-IV norms are age-corrected to account for this.