Review of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth edition.

This article discusses the Stanford-Binet, Fourth Edition (1986). Psychologists using it for the first time may be surprised to discover that the test resembles a new test more than a revision of the old instrument. Differences between this edition and earlier versions are noted. For example, reliance on age levels is gone from the new test. Other changes in test format are discussed. Also noted are problems the test presents for the examiner. For example, instructions and scoring guidelines are sometimes inadequate. The article reviews the adequacy of the technical manual, standardization of the test, the internal consistency reliability of this Fourth Edition, and its validity. The reviewers suggest that practitioners may wish to become well-acquainted with the new Stanford-Binet so that its use might be an option for them, but they should not give the test a superior rating just because of its name. Given the hefty cost of the instrument and the time needed to master it, potential users with limited budgets and limited time may well find that their evaluation needs can be adequately filled by using another test of cognitive ability already in their possession. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Three standard errors of measurement and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Fourth Edition.

The standard errors of measurement provided for the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale—Fourth Edition are (a) of limited utility and (b) set about an inappropriate score for use under most circumstances. Instructions are offered for calculating predicted true scores, and a table of standard errors of measurement is provided. In combination with the predicted true scores, the table can be used to set confidence intervals that will likely encompass an examinee's true score at the time of assessment and to calculate a confidence zone that will likely include an examinee's obtained score on retesting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Composite SAS of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Fourth Edition: Is it determined by only one are SAS?

This study presents results of an investigation into the validity of the Composite Standard Age Score (SAS) of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Fourth Edition, (R. L. Thorndike, E. R Hagen & J. M. Sattler, 1986) as a measure of intellectual ability for individuals with mental retardation. On the basis of the results obtained with the sample of participants in this study, the Composite SAS does not appear to accurately reflect the overall intellectual abilities of many individuals with mental retardation. Specifically, when there is a discrepancy among the SASs of the four Areas (Verbal Reasoning [VRl, Abstract/Visual Reasoning [Ab/VR], Quantitative Reasoning [QR], and Short-Term Memory [STM]), the Composite SAS is closest to the lowest Area SAS instead of an aggregate of the four Area SASs. Archival data demonstrated that this finding is a consistent pattern in the Binet scores for individuals with mental retardation but not for individuals of other intellectual levels. The reasons and the implications for this finding are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale--Fourth Edition: Observations, comments and concerns.

Examines problems encountered using the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale—4th Edition, by R. L. Thorndike et al (1986), with preschoolers. General administration problems include (1) problems with basic mastery of administration due to the expansion of the materials and procedures and (2) problems in the determination of basal and ceiling levels on subtests in which item type changes have occurred. Modifications are suggested for the record booklet and for the Vocabulary, Quantitative, Pattern Analysis, and Absurdities subtests. Problems with interpretation involve (1) the interpretation of Quantitative Reasoning and Short-Term Memory Area scores for 2–6 yr olds and (2) the limited data provided by the technical manual to enable interpretation of findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The demise of the Stanford-Binet Scale.

Argues that the 4th edition of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale lacks the variety of items and the flexibility of administration of the previous edition. It is suggested that its subtest factors are invalid because they are based on theories of organization of abilities that are inadequately confirmed. Furthermore, testers may find it difficult to learn the administrative details. It is recommended that psychologists continue administering the 3rd edition when assessing gifted children. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The validity of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised.

Tested a random sample of 300 Canadian children (50 males and 50 females at 71/2, 101/2, and 131/2 yrs of age) on the Revised WISC (WISC-R). Means for both males and females exceeded the normative IQ mean of 100 at each age level, and there was a gradual decline in IQ from 109.75 at age 71/2 to 103.41 at 131/2. A tendency for the WISC-R to overestimate the ability of younger Ss is suggested. Although analysis failed to reveal any sex differences, males tended to do better on verbal subtests while females tended to do better on performance subtests. Findings suggest that further study is needed to determine whether these results generalize to the entire Canadian population. It is noted that there is no substantiation of concern over the inclusion of American content items on the WISC-R. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Construct validity of the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence and Wide Range Intelligence Test: Convergent and structural validity.

The Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI; Psychological Corporation, 1999) and the Wide Range Intelligence Test (WRIT; Glutting, Adams, & Sheslow, 2000) are two well-normed brief measures of general intelligence with subtests purportedly assessing verbal–crystallized abilities and nonverbal–fluid–visual abilities. With a sample of 152 children, adolescents, and adults, the present study reports meaningful convergent validity coefficients and a latent factor structure consistent with the theoretical intellectual models both tests were constructed to reflect. Consideration of the hierarchical model of intelligence tests and issues regarding test interpretation are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children: Review of a decade of research.

The several aspects of validity, psychometric properties and diagnostic capabilities of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) are critically examined. Among the many limitations of the test perhaps the most serious is the lack of an adequate theoretical rationale which makes assessment of validity difficult. On the positive side the standardization of the WISC is relatively good and it correlates consistently well with other measures of intelligence. 76 refs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparative study of the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Form L-M, among culturally deprived children.

Ss were 50 culturally disadvantaged 60-71 mo. old children. None of the 4 IQ estimates revealed significant differences in regard to sex, race, or age. Results suggested that the tests were not comparable instruments, and the Wechsler test appeared to be more difficult for the Ss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Long-term stability of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition.

Long-term stability of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III; D. Wechsler, 1991) was investigated with a sample of 667 students from 33 states twice evaluated for special education consideration. With an average test-retest interval of 2.87 years, test-retest reliability coefficients for the Verbal IQ, Performance IQ, and Full Scale IQ were .87, .87, and .91, respectively (p     

Internal and external validity of seven Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition short forms in a sample of psychiatric inpatients.

This study examined the validity of 7 short forms of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition (WISC—III; Wechsler, 1991) in a heterogeneous sample of 212 child and adolescent psychiatric inpatients. Short-form scores were transformed into deviation IQs (DIQ) through linear scaling techniques and then compared to (a) WISC—III Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) scores through paired-sample t tests and Pearson correlations to examine internal validity and (b) standardized academic achievement scores through Pearson correlations to examine external validity. A 2 (race)?×?2 (gender)?×?2 (age) multivariate analysis of variance, with FSIQ minus DIQ scores as dependent variables, revealed that several short forms yield different FSIQ estimates between race, gender, and age groups. Two short forms are recommended for use with child and adolescent psychiatric inpatients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Factor space of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition: Critical thoughts and recommendations.

The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition (WISC—III) manual incorporates a detailed and careful series of factor analyses. It recommends using approximations of the Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Organization, Freedom From Distractibility, and Processing Speed factor scores. These approximations are simple sums of the scores of the subtests that load most highly on a factor. These simple sum factor estimates suffer from reduced factorial specificity. The simple estimates share substantially more variance with the factor of General Intelligence, or the g factor, and less variance with the other unrotated factors than the best estimates of the factor. This state of affairs has implications for clinical interpretation of factor scores. Application of the procedures recommended here is practical with the use of a computer and a basic spreadsheet program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validation of the Child Premorbid Intelligence Estimate method to predict premorbid Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition Full Scale IQ among children with brain injury.

Determination of neuropsychological impairment involves contrasting obtained performances with a comparison standard, which is often an estimate of premorbid IQ. M. R. Schoenberg, R. T. Lange, T. A. Brickell, and D. H. Saklofske (2007) proposed the Child Premorbid Intelligence Estimate (CPIE) to predict premorbid Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-4th Edition (WISC-IV; Wechsler, 2003). The CPIE includes 12 algorithms to predict FSIQ, 1 using demographic variables and 11 algorithms combining WISC-IV subtest raw scores with demographic variables. The CPIE was applied to a sample of children with acquired traumatic brain injury (TBI sample; n = 40) and a healthy demographically matched sample (n = 40). Paired-samples t tests found estimated premorbid FSIQ differed from obtained FSIQ when applied to the TBI sample (ps ≤ .01). When applied to healthy peers, estimated and obtained FSIQ did not differ (ps > .02). The demographic only algorithm performed well at a group level, but estimates were restricted in range. Algorithms combining single subtest scores with demographics performed adequately. Results support the clinical application of the CPIE algorithms. However, limitations to estimating individual premorbid ability, including statistical and developmental factors, must be considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Confirmatory factor analysis of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition in an Australian clinical sample.

A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III; D. Wechsler, 1991) with a sample of 579 Australian children referred for assessment because of academic difficulties in the classroom. The children were administered the WISC-III as part of the initial eligibility determination process for funding of special education services. The children were aged between 6 years and 16 years 7 months. One-, two-, three-, and four-factor models were tested. The four-factor model proposed in the WISC-III manual fit the data significantly better than all other models tested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The WPPSI and the Stanford-Binet: A validity and reliability study using gifted preschool children.

Administered the wechsler preschool and primary scale of intelligence (wppsi) to 30 white male and female 47-68 mo. Olds with stanford-binet intelligence scale iqs of 120 or more. Only the wppsi full scale scores were significantly related to the stanford-binet scores (p     

Relative usefulness of elevation, variability, and shape information from WISC—R, K-ABC, and Fourth Edition Stanford-Binet profiles in predicting achievement.

Scatter analysis of IQ profiles has a long and controversial history. The study was conducted to determine whether the validity of scatter information is any greater for 2 new IQ batteries, the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) and the Fourth Edition Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (SB4), than for the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Revised (WISC—R). Within a sample of referred children, numerical indexes were computed of profile elevation, shape, and variability for all IQ tests. Using hierarchical multiple regression with achievement scores as dependent variables, shape information was found that had marginal incremental validity over elevation as a predictor for the WISC—R, even less for the SB4, and virtually none for the K-ABC. Implications of these results are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Orthogonal higher order factor structure of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales--fifth edition for children and adolescents.

Orthogonal higher-order factor structure of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales-Fifth Edition (SB-5; Roid, 2003a) for child and adolescent samples is reported. Multiple criteria for factor extraction unanimously supported extraction of only one dimension and a unidimensional model. However, following results from DiStefano and Dombrowski (2006) and theoretical consideration, two factors were extracted and obliquely rotated and further subjected to the Schmid and Leiman (1957) procedure using MacOrtho (Watkins, 2004). Results showed that the largest portions of total and common variance were accounted for by the second-order, global ('g') factor and interpretation of the SB-5 should focus primarily, if not exclusively, on the general, Full Scale IQ. No evidence for a five-factor solution was found. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Construct validity and the Taylor Anxiety Scale.

"The intent of this paper has been to emphasize the directive role of theory in the construction of psychological tests." The several methodological issues arising from the use of theory in test construction are illustrated through a critical examination of the Taylor Anxiety Scale. "Our conclusion was that the A scale has only a tenuous, theoretical and empirical coordination to the Hullian construct of drive." 31 references. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)