Interpreting the WISC-V indices

Jacques Grégoire
Dans Le Journal des psychologues Issue 1, 2017, pages 24 à 29
Éditions Martin Média
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 DOSSIER
WISC-V: new for clinical observation

Jacques Grégoire
Interpreting the WISC
Doctor of Psychology
Professor at UCLouvain
Translated and edited
by Cadenza Academic
Translations
Translator: Robin MacKay,
Editor: Hayley Wood,
Senior editor: Mark Mellor

WISC-V is a tool that remains open to was respectful of the individual and did not confuse
valuable and complex interpretation. the process of evaluation with “testing.” In 1975, at
In this article, Jacques Grégoire reviews the end of his life, he wrote:
the theoretical models upon which it What we measure with tests is not what tests
measure—not information, not spatial perception,
was founded and the developments that
not reasoning ability. These are only means to an
have resulted in the newest version, end. What intelligence tests measure, what we hope
giving a clear and precise explanation of they measure, is something much more important:
what is measured by the five indices that the capacity of an individual to understand the world
make up the WISC-V, along with some about him and his resourcefulness to cope with its
pointers for interpreting them. challenges. (Wechsler 1975)
In pursuit of this goal, David Wechsler designed
his test according to the principles set out by

T
Alfred Binet at the beginning of the twentieth
he fifth edition of the Wechsler Intelligence
century. According to Binet, an individual’s level of
Scale for Children (WISC-V) introduces a
intelligence can only be correctly evaluated through
new index, along with modifications to the
their performance in a set of tasks for which the
measurement of several of the existing
average ability is known. In the first version of his
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indices from the previous version. This new scale
test (1939), David Wechsler selected eleven varied
may therefore be confusing for practitioners
tasks whose clinical significance he had been able to
accustomed to using the WISC-IV. In this article,
test as a young psychologist in the American army.
we review the fundamental organization of the
These tasks, eight of which still feature in the current
new scale and present its theoretical, clinical, and
scale, allowed him to calculate an IQ, one proof of
statistical bases. We then look at each of the five
whose validity is its power in predicting academic
indices and what they measure. Finally, we outline
and professional performance.
a method for analyzing index scores that can be
From his experience in the military Wechsler drew
used to extract the maximum amount of relevant
not only the tasks that form the basis of his test, but
information from a WISC-V protocol.
also the significance of calculating not just an overall
score (Full Scale IQ), but two other composite scores,
FROM IQ MEASUREMENT one based on verbal tests and the other on non-
TO INDEX MEASUREMENT verbal tests. He called the first “Verbal IQ” and the
David Wechsler spent most of his professional second “Performance IQ.”
career at the Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital in New These two complementary measures to the FSIQ
York City. Defining himself primarily as a clinical have met with great success among practitioners,
psychologist, he always advocated a use of tests that who find them invaluable for understanding the

II LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343

C-V indices

intellectual functioning of those being evaluated. to be organized into four subscales: Verbal
The organization of the Wechsler scales on the Comprehension, Perceptual Organization, Freedom
basis of three composite scores (FSIQ, VIQ, and PIQ) from Distractibility, and Processing Speed. As a
remained unchanged until the death of their creator result, practitioners were able to calculate four
in 1981. It was not until WISC-III, published in the composite scores (indices) corresponding to these
United States in 1991, that the organization of the four subscales.
test was (tentatively) called into question. Even This was however only one possible alternative
during Wechsler’s lifetime, however, several factorial to the calculation of VIQ and PIQ, which remained
analyses of the calibration samples had suggested the preferred method. The two composite score
organizing the tests into three more coherent and calculation systems continued to exist side by
clinically relevant subscales. side in the third edition of the Wechsler Adult
This would have involved supplementing the VIQ Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III).
and PIQ with a third subscale to include Arithmetic, It was only in 2003, with the publication of the
Number Memory, and Coding, which were strongly WISC-IV in the United States, that VIQ and PIQ were
correlated with one another and sensitive to abandoned in favor of the indices alone. At the same
attention disorders. Despite the empirical evidence, time, the four indices that had been developed on
however, Wechsler never wanted to change the a statistical basis were linked to the components of
organization of his scale, judging it to be entirely two models of the structure of intelligence, 
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satisfactory
from a clinical
point of view. Stratum 3 g Facteur
After Wechsler’s
death, the
composition
and
Stratum 2
organization
of the scales
Crystallized Fluid General Visual Perception Auditory Cognitive Processing
gradually began intelligence intelligence memory perception auditive perception speed speed
to change.
In WISC-III, the
Stratum 1
introduction of
a new subtest—
Symbols—
enabled the
subtests Figure 1—John B. Carroll’s hierarchical model of intelligence.

LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343 III

 DOSSIER
WISC-V: new developments in clinical observation


   one developed by John B. Carroll (1993) and the with some associating it with neural properties
other by Raymond Cattell and John L. Horn (1966), such as the speed of neuronal conductivity, and
now brought together under the acronym CHC others seeing it instead as an ability to control our
(Cattell-Horn-Carroll ). intellectual activities. Developed via a different
John B. Carroll’s hierarchical model of intelligence route from that of Carroll, Cattell and Horn’s
is shown in Figure 1. Based on the analysis of more model is based on an almost identical structure of
than 460 databases collected during research into intelligence, which is what prompted the merger of
intellectual ability between 1930 and 1985, it the two models within the CHC model.
represents the structure of those human abilities The WISC-IV indices were linked a posteriori to
which, taken as a whole, constitute intelligence. At certain second-level components of the CHC
the base of the model are elementary abilities, each model, meaning that the correspondences are
of which pertains to a narrow field of intellectual approximate. This is particularly the case for the
activity. The second stratum of the model comprises Perceptual Reasoning Index, which corresponds to
both crystallized intelligence and visual perception.
Although the CHC model includes eight This makes it more difficult to interpret, because it is
not easy to disentangle the roles played by the two
Stratum 2 abilities, only five of these are intellectual abilities in the observed performances.
During the development of WISC-V, the goal was to
measured by WISC-V, for reasons of clinical aim for a term-for-term correspondence between
each index and a single Stratum 2 ability. Although
value and time available during testing. the CHC model includes eight Stratum 2 abilities,
only five of these are measured by WISC-V, for
eight general abilities that cover broad areas reasons of clinical value and time available during
of intellectual activity. Finally, at the top of the testing: crystallized intelligence, fluid intelligence,
model is a general factor (g) which represents general memory, visual perception, and cognitive
characteristics shared by all intellectual abilities and speed. These five facets of intelligence are the
explains the observed correlations between them. most significant for the diagnostic examination
The nature of the g factor is still a subject of debate, of reasoning and learning disorders. Moreover,
in order to be reliably measured, an ability
WISC-V Indices Tasks CHC Model Acronym must be evaluated by several tests. In the
case of WISC-V, the decision was made to
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Verbal comprehension Similarities Crystallized Gc measure each of the five selected abilities
intelligence
with two tests so as to limit the duration of the
Vocabulary intellectual examination.

Visual-spatial Blocks Visual processing Gv

Visual puzzles WHAT THE FIVE INDICES ACTUALLY

MEASURE
Fluid reasoning Matrices Fluid intelligence Gf
The tests selected to measure the indices and
Scales their correspondences with the abilities in the
CHC model are shown in Table 1. The tests
Working memory Number memory Short-term memory Gsm
were selected based on their clinical relevance
Image memory and their correlations with the corresponding
factors. Practitioners should keep in mind that
Processing speed Code Processing speed Gs
the tests selected only allow for an estimation
Symbols of the target abilities. These abilities cannot be
measured directly, but only via performance
Table 1—Correspondence between WISC-V indices and abilities in the CHC model. on tasks used as indicators. These tasks all

IV LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343

 involve relatively complex mental processes that The Block Design subtest is the only subtest in
go beyond the target ability alone. In order to WISC-V that requires object manipulation. This
correctly interpret performance at a given task, it externalization of problem-solving allows for
is therefore essential to have a sound knowledge significant observation of the procedures used
of the processes involved in the task in order to by the child (systematic approach or trial and
identify the sources of potential difficulty, since the error, discarded solutions, etc.). The Visual Puzzles
same score can result from various processes and/or subtest replaces the old subtest of the same name
forms of dysfunction. which required pieces to be assembled in order to
The Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI) is a measure construct a figure. In WISC-V children no longer have
of what Raymond Cattell calls “crystallized to manipulate physical materials, but only solve
intelligence.” This is the body of knowledge items purely mentally, which adds complexity. In
and abilities acquired throughout our lives that addition, the increased number of items in the new
enable us to cope with the majority of problems subtest and the withdrawal of time measurement
we encounter in everyday life. It largely involves have resulted in a significant improvement in
those verbal skills that enable us to think and reliability and validity.
communicate. It is therefore logical that the two The Fluid Reasoning Index (FRI) corresponds to
tests chosen to measure this index both involve the ability of the same name in the CHC model. It
the formation of verbal concepts. But this does not measures a general problem-solving ability that
mean that crystallized intelligence is solely verbal. consists in extracting the underlying rules of a
Adding decimal numbers together, understanding problem situation and then using them to solve
a sequence of images in a comic book, or using the problem posed. The typical illustration of
a cell phone are also acquired skills that belong this intellectual approach is given by the Matrix
to crystallized intelligence, although they are Reasoning subtest, inspired by the test created by
non-verbal. Because of its composition, it is not John C. Raven in 1938. The subject must analyze a
surprising that VCI is the index that correlates sequence of geometric figures in order to identify its
best with academic performance, which involves underlying rules, and then apply these rules in order
extensive use of verbal intellectual skills. Depending to complete the series. The test therefore involves
on the academic subject, the correlations observed implementing a chain of inductive and deductive
range from 0.50 to 0.70. reasoning. This is the general approach that
Logically enough, educational opportunity promotes allows human beings to tackle problems they may
the development of crystallized intelligence, of encounter for which they have no specific procedure
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which VCI is a good indicator. This is in fact the index acquired through experience or education. Certain
most closely correlated with the educational level of authors have suggested that fluid intelligence
the subject’s parents. is the central, innate core of intelligence, but
For instance, there is an average difference of have overhastily concluded from this that logical
15 points in children’s performance on the VCI test sequence tests provide an accurate estimate of
depending on whether or not their parents have a intelligence free of all cultural influence. This idea
bachelor’s degree. does not stand up to scrutiny of the empirical data.
The Visual Spatial Index (VSI) is a measure of what Of all intellectual tests, logical series are in fact the
Carroll calls “visual perception” and is generally most sensitive to the Flynn effect, i.e., the increase,
known as “visual-spatial intelligence.” This is the over the last fifty years, of average intellectual
ability to analyze, encode, and mentally manipulate performance among populations in developed
spatial forms, and is measured using the Block countries. Such rapid increase is possible only if
Design and Visual Puzzles subtests. In order to focus the skills involved in the tests are influenced by
the VSI score as closely as possible on the ability to education. Moreover, the WISC-V benchmarking
be evaluated, the impact of speed upon the results data show that children’s performance on the FRI
has been minimized; time bonus points only feature is almost as sensitive to their parents’ education as
in the last four items of the Block Design subtest. their performance on the VCI. Finally, it should 

LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343 V

 DOSSIER
WISC-V: new developments in clinical observation


   be borne in mind that inductive and deductive The Processing Speed Index (PSI) provides an
reasoning does not take place in a vacuum, but estimate of what is also called processing speed
always focuses on specific content with which in the CHC model. However, it provides only a
the test subject will be more or less comfortable very narrow measure of the latter, as the two tests
depending on their own interests and prior of which it consists only evaluate the speed of
experiences. In the Matrix Reasoning subtest the processing of non-semantic visual stimuli and
content is essentially geometrical, whereas in the manual motor response. Many aspects of processing
Figure Weights subtest it is mainly numerical. speed are not reflected in this index. Practitioners
The Working Memory Index (WMI) allows for should therefore be wary of over-generalizing
the assessment of what is called the general the results observed. Since the responses
memory ability in the CHC model. In WISC-V, the involve writing, the PSI is sensitive to the level of
measurement of memory has been expanded with graphomotor abilities and to dyspraxia. The motor
the introduction of the new Picture Span subtest, component of the PSI subtests can also penalize
which provides a measure of visual working memory gifted children who are very rapid at mental
in addition to the auditory working memory already processing but whose motor development is often
assessed by the Digit Span subtest. Working average for children of their age. A high score on the
memory plays a key role within intelligence. It is PSI requires a high level of concentration in both
the component of intelligence that enables us to tests. As a result, it is very sensitive to attention
consciously process information. Its capacity is disorders and anything liable to slow down
limited, making it a bottleneck of the cognitive cognitive processing, such as depression or learning
system. The more information we are able to process disabilities.
at the same time and the higher the speed at which
we can do so, the more we can solve complex HOW TO INTERPRET THE INDICES
problems. This is the basis upon which the logical Interpreting the indices first involves examining
series of the FRI are constructed. Their complexity their dispersion or homogeneity. Assuming a child
increases as a function of the number of rules we obtains a standard score of 10 on all subtests
have to manage simultaneously. Although it allows and, therefore, a score of 100 on each of the
for an extended measurement of working memory, five indices, we could simply conclude that all of
WMI does not cover the full extent of working their performances fell within the mean, without
memory. It cannot, therefore, be considered as a being able to say much more than this. In such
general measure of the latter. When a low WMI a situation, FSIQ would be the best indicator of
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score is observed, it may therefore be useful to the child’s overall intellectual abilities. In the vast
supplement the measurement of working memory majority of cases, however, we do not obtain such
with tests that assess other facets of working a homogeneous picture of performance. There is
memory. It is also often useful to examine the usually some degree of difference between index
complementary scores to this test—for example, scores, and between the subtests that make up
measurement of digit spans in direct and reverse each of the indices. The question therefore is how
order. The results may in fact be very different, since to assess the significance of such disparities in
recall in direct order is a measure of immediate order to identify those that merit our attention and
memory only, whereas recall in reverse order is interpretation.
also a measure of the efficiency of the central The simplest method for analyzing index dispersion
administrator (i.e. management of the twofold task is shown in Figure 2.
of memorizing the series and reorganizing it into It consists in calculating the mean of the scores for
reverse order). The WMI requires a real effort of the five indices, and then the difference between
concentration, making it very sensitive to attention this average and the score for each index.
deficit disorders. It is also sensitive to dyslexia, Since test scores are inevitably subject to errors
which can disturb the processing of information of measurement, not all observed differences
sequences. necessarily reflect an actual discrepancy between

VI LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343

 the respective abilities.
There is a very high
probability that small
differences are simply
the result of random
errors of measurement.
Conversely, the larger
the differences, the
more likely it is that
they reflect actual
discrepancies between
certain abilities. The
manual provides
threshold values at
which it is reasonable
to pay attention to the
observed differences
 
and interpret them Figure 2—Analyzing the dispersion of index scores.
in terms of strengths
or weaknesses. These real differences should may be called
%
not, however, be systematically regarded as into question.
manifestations of disorders. Indeed, a certain The WISC-V Verbal Comprehension 19.0
dispersion of performance is common in general manual provides
Visual-Spatial 22.0
subjects with no proven pathology. This variability threshold values
is normal and should come as no surprise. It is the for determining Fluid Reasoning 25.1
result of differences in opportunities and interests when a
Working Memory 17.6
during intellectual development. Some children, difference
for instance, develop the verbal facets of their between two Processing Speed 25.4
intelligence more, while others develop the visual- subtests can
spatial facets. For each index, Table 2 presents the be considered Table 2—Frequency, in the general population
percentage of children in the calibration sample statistically of children, of significant deviations f
rom the mean for each index.
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whose score deviates significantly from the mean of significant.
the five indices. It can be seen that this represents On the basis of
between one-fifth and one-quarter of the children analysis of the dispersion of the indices and their
in the calibration sample. Of these, only 34.8% had homogeneity, it is possible to identify the scores
no index that differed significantly from the average. that merit our attention and interpretation. In some
A certain degree of index dispersion is therefore cases, the profile will be sufficiently homogeneous
a common phenomenon that must be cautiously for us to consider FSIQ to be the most representative
assessed, avoiding all systematic interpretation in indicator of the intellectual functioning of the
terms of pathology. subject under
Dispersion of indices can affect the interpretation examination. In other cases, faced with a more
of FSIQ. Indeed, the greater the dispersion, the less dispersed score profile, we can talk about
relevant FSIQ is as an indicator of overall intellectual “strengths” and “weaknesses” in relation to the
functioning. But the same reasoning should be components of intelligence. In such cases we
applied to the indices themselves. When scores must be careful not to qualify all weaknesses as
on the two subtests that make up an index differ “pathological.” Such weaknesses are, in fact, relative.
significantly from one another, the validity of the For example, in a gifted child with scores on
index as the measure of a broad-ranging ability four indices above 135, a score of 118 on one 

LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343 VII

 DOSSIER
WISC-V: new developments in clinical observation


   index indicates a relative weakness, but cannot This short introduction to interpretation of the
be considered as a sign of a cognitive disorder. WISC-V indices should give the reader an idea
In order to speak of “disorders,” a score must be of their immense value, but also the complexity
significantly lower than the mean of subjects in the involved in this task of interpretation. WISC-V is an
calibration sample, and must be accompanied by excellent measurement tool, but has true value only
difficulties in adjustment or learning. In such cases, in the hands of a competent practitioner who is well
in order to identify the significance of an apparently informed about the strengths and weaknesses of the
pathological score, it is important to cross-reference instrument, and respects the methodological and
this data with other quantitative and qualitative ethical rules that should govern any interpretation
information from the overall diagnostic examination. of the results.
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VIII LE JOURNAL DES PSYCHOLOGUES / DEC. 2016 – JAN. 2017 / N° 343