PROBLEMKnowledge of intellectual impairment, i.e., the discrepancy between present and premorbid intellectual functioning, has long been considered of significance in the study of the psychiatric patient. Very early, the Stanford-Binet was used to yield information relative to the impairment process through the study of scatter. More recently, the Wechsler-Bellevue has been used extensively for this purpose because its construction lends itself more readily to the analysis of scatter. In order to objectify and quantify scatter as an index of impairment, Wechsler has devised a ratio between certain of the subtests in his scale which are resistive to the impairment process and those tests which are readily affected by such a process(2). While studies of this ratio have questioned its validity @), psychologists in clinical practice have continued to utilize the rationale underlying the use of this ratio for evaluating impairment, i.e., psychological functions differ in their resistance to impairment and the functions which are resistive to impairment are indices of premorbid functioning. I n the clinical situation, the data from the Wechsler-Bellevue are usually integrated with educational and vocational attainments and other facts from the case history in order to estimate premorbid intellectual functioning.This method for evaluating premorbid intellectual functioning, however, may not be applicable to the severely impaired patient for the following reasons: (1) Where the mental illness results in marked reduction of functioning, the patient may show a pervasive impairment affecting all psychological functions with the result that scatter is minimized. (2) Where the illness is manifested before maturity, the patient may not achieve the attainments of which he is capable and which would ordinarily be used as a basis for estimating premorbid intelligence.This study is concerned with answering the following questions relative to psychologists' estimates of premorbid intelligence in severely impaired patients:(1) Do psychologists agree in their estimates of premorbid intelligence based on the Wechsler-Bellevue? (2) Do psychologists agree in their estimates of premorbid intelligence based on case histories? (3) Do psychologists' estimates of premorbid intelligence based on the Wechsler-Bellevue agree with their estimates based on the case history? (4) Do psychologists' estimates of premorbid intelligence based on the Wechsler-Bellevue alone and on the case history alone agree with the judgments of the psychologists who had actually tested the patients? (5) Do psychologists agree in their reasons for estimating premorbid intelligence based on the Wechsler-Bellevue and the case history when each is used separately? SUBJECTSThe subjects of this study were ten patients whose Wechsler-Bellevue protocols and case histories were available in the psychology department files. The WechslerBellevue total IQ's of these patients ranged from 54 to 74 with a mean of 69. Nine of the cases had been judged by the examining psychologists ...
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.