Similarities and Differences in Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition (WISC-III) Profiles: Support for Subtest Analysis in Clinical Referrals

Abstract

Our study supports the reliability and validity of profile analysis in children with neurobiological disorders. Three mutually exclusive WISC-III profiles were identified that characterized the majority of children with autism (low coding or Freedom from Distractibility Index with low Comprehension), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and learning disability (low Coding or FDI without low comprehension), and brain injury (low Performance without low Coding or FDI). The profiles suggest attention, writing, and performance speed deficits in autism, ADHD, and LD; global visual-motor problems in brain injury; and specific difficulty with language comprehension and social reasoning in autism. Children with anxiety, depression, and behavior disorders did not exhibit distinct profiles. Our profile analysis is based on the simple rank ordering of standard scores. The profiles are clinically useful because they may alert clinicians to certain diagnostic possibilities, they reveal characteristic strengths and weaknesses that have implications for educational intervention, and they are consistent with preliminary WISC-IV data.

Keywords:

• WISC-III profiles
• ADHD
• Autism
• Brain Injury
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Oppositional-Defiant Disorder
• LD

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We wish to thank the Wells Foundation, Oxford Foundation, Spencer Foundation, Children's Miracle Network, and Penn State Children, Youth, and Family Consortium for their generous support of our research.

Notes

Mood/behavior disorders include anxiety, depression, oppositional-defiant, and adjustment disorders. ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), autism, and brain injury include both children with and without LD (learning disability).

ADHD = attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, LD = learning disability.

^aCoding ≤ Picture Completion, Picture Arrangement, Object Assembly, and Block Design.

^bFDI (Freedom from Distractibility) ≤ Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Organization, and Processing Speed.

ADHD = attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, LD = learning disability.

^aPerceptual organization plus processing speed ≤ verbal comprehension plus Freedom from Distractibility.

ADHD = attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, LD = learning disability.

^aComprehension ≤ Information, Similarities, and Vocabulary.

^bBlock Design ≥ Picture Completion, Picture Arrangement, and Object Assembly.

FDI = Freedom from Distractibility Index, ADHD = attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, LD = learning disability.