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The WISC IV Interpretation

Q: Recently my son was given the WISC IV test at school for a psyhcoeducational evaluation that his doctor had requested. Below are my questions:

1. In regards to the VCI, how many areas are covered? Is it true the five areas are similarities, vocabulary, comprehension, information, and word reasoning?

2. Can PRI score be accurate when the area of Picture Completion was not completed?

3. Can a full scale IQ be determined when information of Q2 is missing?

A: For your first question, yes, 5 areas are covered in the Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI). However, the information and word reasoning subtests are not included in the index total score.

For question 2, on PRI (Perceptual Reasoning Index), again Picture Completion subtest is not included in the index total score. This is because Picture Completion and other more traditional measures of perceptual ability, measure visual discrimination and attention to visual detail, which is considered a lower order cognitive ability than fluid reasoning. So, yes, PRI score in this case may be accurate.

And yes again for question 3. Hope this has been helpful. It would be better if you see the administrator who conducted the test or a psychologist who is able to explain the results for a better understanding of the individual scores.

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