Exploring the Validity and Reliability of the WISC-IV: A Review of the Literature

This study seeks to examine the psychometric properties, namely the validity and reliability as well as the overall psychometric quality of the WISC-IV. For this purpose, a systematic review of the literature was carried out. Data analysis revealed that the fourth edition of the Wechsler scale for children is more sophisticated in form and content, in line with the modern approaches and familiar models of intelligence and the measurement of mental abilities. However, research in the field of psychometric quality of this test does not give a clear picture of its interpretive power or its contribution to diagnostic evaluation. Despite its relative utilization in differential diagnostic and diagnostic assessment procedures, there is a strong criticism regarding its structural validity and the models on the basis of which it is explained, as well as the dominant structure emerging from WISC-IV. Over time, the four-factor model seems to be abandoned and its analysis oriented towards a five-factor model, in line with the CHC theory of intelligence and cognitive abilities. All in all, this study enriches our theoretical and practical understanding about the WISC-IV giving rise to other studies in this field.

The Cognitive-Affective-Motivation Model of Learning (CAMML): Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

The Cognitive-Affective-Motivation Model of Learning (CAMML) is a proposed framework for integrating contemporary motivation, affective (Big 5 personality) and cognitive (CHC theory) constructs in the practice of school psychologists (SPs). The central tenet of this article is that SPs need to integrate motivation alongside affective and cognitive constructs vis-à-vis an updated trilogy-of-the-mind (cognitive, conative, affective) model of intellectual functioning. CAMML builds on Richard Snow’s seminal research on academic aptitudes—which are not synonymous with cognitive abilities. Learning aptitude complexes are academic domain-specific cognitive abilities and personal investment mechanisms (motivation and self-regulation) that collectively produce a student’s readiness to learn in a specific domain. CAMML incorporates the “crossing the Rubicon” commitment pathway model of motivated self-regulated learning. It is recommended SPs take a fresh look at motivation theory, constructs, and research, embedded in the CAMML aptitude framework, by going back-to-the-future guided by the wisdom of giants from the field of cognition, intelligence, and educational psychology.

Age and Sex Invariance of the Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Cognitive Abilities: Evidence from Psychometric Network Modeling

The Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Cognitive Abilities (WJ IV COG) is a comprehensive assessment battery designed to assess broad and narrow cognitive abilities, as defined by the Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory of intelligence. Previous studies examined the invariance of the WJ assessments across sex and age groups using factor analytic methods. Psychometric network modeling is an alternative methodology that can address both direct and indirect relationships among the observed variables. In this study, we employed psychometric network modeling to examine the invariance of the WJ IV COG across sex and age groups. Using a normative sample (n = 4212 participants) representative of the United States population, we tested the extent to which the factorial structure of the WJ IV COG aligned with CHC theory for the school-aged sample. Next, we used psychometric network modeling as a data-driven method to investigate whether the network structure of the WJ IV COG remains similar across different sex and age (age 6 to 19, inclusively) groups. Our results showed that the WJ IV COG maintained the same network structure across all age and sex groups, although the network structure at younger ages indicated weaker relationships among some subtests. Overall, the results provide construct validity evidence for the WJ IV COG, based on both theoretical and data-driven methods.

SENILITY AND COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE: ANALYSIS OF WECHSLER SCALE IN ELDERLY WITH MAJOR NEUROCOGNITIVE DISORDER

Background: CHC theory is a hierarchical model of intelligence, organized through cognitive skills and dividing the construct into crystallized and fluid. Objective: To describe the correlation among crystallized and fluid abilities in healthy people diagnosed with dementia. Methods: 45 subjects with 50 to 89 years old and at least 1 year of schooling. They were submitted to a detailed clinical interview and, later, to a neuropsychological evaluation. RAVLT, Wechsler Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III or WASI) and FDT were applied. Sample was divided into 2 groups: healthy elderly (without cognitive and functional decline) and those diagnosed with dementia (GE). The diagnosis of dementia was based on the DSM-5. Results: RAVLT and the Wechsler Scale differentiated HE from DG (p <0.0001). FDT did not show a statistically significant difference in the Counting, Reading and Inhibition items, showing that tasks involve time were not able to differentiate healthy individuals from DG. To compare the performance IQ it is evident that the performance in fluid skills is less effective, when compared to the crystallized items (IQ verbal), in differentiating healthy subjects from dementia. Conclusion: Tasks involving learning, delayed recall memory and recognition, that is, crystallized tasks, are more effective in differentiating dementia when compared to fluid tasks (processing speed).

The Athletic Intelligence Quotient and Performance in the National Football League

Introduction In the realm of competitive athletics, numerous variables have been examined for predictive utility with respect to player selection/development and outcomes on the field. Notwithstanding important advances, the current predictors only account for a modest amount of variance in outcomes of relevance in the National Football League (NFL). Objective The primary objective of this study was to investigate the predictive validity of a new measure of athletic intelligence, the Athletic Intelligence Quotient (AIQ), which is based on the empirically supported Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Theory of Intelligence. The predictive validity of the AIQ was determined in relation to performance metrics from 146 NFL players across several seasons. Results Hierarchical regression analyses indicate that specific AIQ factors accounted for a statistically significant increase in the explanation of variance beyond the current level of evaluation for several performance metrics (e.g., career approximate value; sacks, tackles, rushing yards). Further, specific factors of the AIQ are related to position specific statistics, offering the possibility that performance prediction can be focused in for the specific skills required by a given position. Discussion Given the recent impact of analytics in professional sports, and the significant findings noted in the current investigation, the authors discuss the potential importance of the AIQ in the selection and coaching processes.

Measurement and Structure of Cognition in the Longitudinal Aging Study in India—Diagnostic Assessment of Dementia

We tested whether a complex model of human cognitive abilities based on Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory, developed in English-speaking samples, adequately describes correlations among tests in the Longitudinal Aging Study in India-Diagnostic Assessment of Dementia (LASI-DAD) (N=3,224). Tests in the neuropsychological battery were chosen for their appropriateness for measuring cognition in older adults in India and suitability for co-calibration with the core LASI survey (N=72,000). We evaluated the factor structure and its conformity with a classical CHC factor model incorporating measurement models for general cognition, 5 broad domains (orientation, executive functioning, language/fluency, memory, visuospatial), and 5 narrow domains (abstract reasoning, attention/speed, immediate memory, delayed memory, recognition memory) of cognitive performance. Model fit was adequate (RMSEA:0.051; CFI:0.916; SRMR:0.060). We demonstrated configural factorial invariance of a cognitive battery in the Indian LASI-DAD using CHC theory. Broad domain factors may be used to rank individuals with respect to cognitive performance and classify cognitive impairment.

The Latent-Variable Structure of the Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination-Revised

Objectives To establish a theoretically justified factor structure for the Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination-Revised (ACE-R). Methods Our sample comprised 288 patients with Parkinson’s disease (179 men and 109 women). The mean age of participants was 66.66 (SD = 8.93). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to evaluate the test developers’ five-factor model of the ACE-R, and alternative models as guided by the Cattell–Horn–Carroll (CHC) theory. Exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) was also employed to examine alternative factor structures to ensure that a good candidate model was not overlooked. Results A three-factor CHC-guided CFA and a similar three-factor ESEM model both showed acceptable overall fit, and interpretable factor structures. The three-factor CFA model showed two factors of pure CHC constructs: acquired knowledge (Gc), and visuospatial ability (Gv), and one combined factor, namely, long-term memory retrieval, fluency, and working memory (Glr-Gsm). The three-factor ESEM model showed three factors essentially in line with the CFA results. Conclusion The three-factor CHC-guided CFA model was selected as the best model to guide clinical interpretation of cognitive variables underlying ACE-R scores.

The Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Achievement Provides Too Many Scores for Clinical Interpretation

The Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement, Fourth Edition (WJ IV ACH) is purported to align with Cattell–Horn–Carroll (CHC) theory and offers upward of 20 scores within its interpretive and scoring system. The Technical Manual does not furnish validity evidence for the scores reported by the scoring system, suggesting that evidentiary support may be incomplete. Exploratory bifactor analysis (EBFA; maximum likelihood extraction with a bigeomin [orthogonal] rotation) was applied to the two school-aged correlation matrices at ages 9 to 19. Results indicated nonalignment with CHC theory and do not support the interpretation of most of the scores suggested by the scoring system. Instead, the results of this study suggest that the loading patterns diverge significantly from the interpretive system produced by the WJ IV ACH. Only the academic fluency and academic knowledge clusters emerged following the use of EBFA. Implications for clinical interpretation of the WJ IV ACH are offered.