WAIS-III Factor Index Score Patterns After Traumatic Brain Injury

Abstract

Profile subtypes, based on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition (WAIS-III) factor index scores, were examined in a sample of 166 patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) by means of a two-stage clustering procedure. Three reliable subtypes were found that were differentiated primarily by level of performance across all factor index scores, although each of them demonstrated a relative weakness on the Processing Speed index. These subtypes were then validated on the basis of demographic variables, injury parameters, and additional psychometric measures that had not been included in the clustering procedures. The results indicated that performance on the WAIS-III after TBI was affected by both injury severity and level of education. It is concluded that there is no unique "signature" profile on the WAIS-III after TBI, except that a relative strength on the Processing Speed index is uncommon with this condition.

Unravelling nonverbal cognitive performance in acquired aphasia

“…The Spatial Span test from the Wechsler Memory Scale-3rd Edition (WMS-III; Wechsler, 1997b), which loaded on a working memory factor when not allowed to split between factors, loaded more strongly on the perceptual factor than it did on a working memory factor when split loadings were permitted. In studies of special clinical populations examining only WAIS-III subtests, factor analysis confirmed that nonverbal subtests, Picture Completion, Block Design, and Matrix Reasoning all loaded on the same factor (Jones et al, 2006;Ryan & Paolo, 2001;van der Heijden & Donders, 2003). These studies all support the hypothesis that the nonverbal subtests measure a single perceptual construct.…”

“…Directly treating non-linguistic cognitive abilities in people with aphasia may improve everyday communication (Ramsberger, 2005). The underlying factor structure of nonverbal tasks has been well studied in healthy individuals (e.g., Leonberger, Nicks, Larrabee, & Goldfader, 1992;Tulsky & Price, 2003), but to a lesser extent in special clinical populations (Jones, van Schaik, & Witts, 2006;Ryan & Paolo, 2001;van der Heijden & Donders, 2003). Tulsky and Price (2003) showed that the nonverbal Performance IQ measures from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-3rd Edition (WAIS-III; Wechsler, 1997a), including Matrix Reasoning, Block Design, Picture Completion, and to a lesser extent Picture Arrangement, load strongly on a perceptual/nonverbal factor.…”

Cognitive reserve as a moderator of responsiveness to an online problem-solving intervention for adolescents with complicated mild-to-severe traumatic brain injury

“…Post-TBI neurocognitive deficits often occur across cognitive domains, including general intelligence (Catroppa et al, 2008), working memory (Schwartz et al, 2003), attention (DeJong & Donders, 2008; Mottram & Donders, 2005; Jacobs & Donders, 2008), executive functions (Yeates et al, 2002; Ganesalingam, Sanson, Anderson, & Yeates, 2006; Ganesalingam, Sanson, Anderson, & Yeates, 2007), and processing speed (Donders & Janke, 2008; Donders, 1997; Tremont, Mittenberg, & Miller, 1999; van der Heijden & Donders, 2003). Although deficits are greater in moderate to severe TBI (Schwartz et al, 2003; Catroppa et al, 2008; Yeates et al, 2002), existing research suggests that, relative to uncomplicated mild TBI and typically developing controls, children with complicated mild TBI often evidence impaired episodic memory and cognitive processing along with a diminished ability to manage cognitive interference (Levin et al, 2008).…”

Cluster subtypes on the California Verbal Learning Test–Second Edition (CVLT–II) in a traumatic brain injury sample

“…Similar findings have been observed previously with other psychometric tests after TBI. For example, Van der Heijden and Donders (2003) completed a cluster analysis on WAIS-III factor index scores following TBI. Similar to the current results, no clusters were found to be "unique" to TBI, but they did find that WAIS-III performance was related to injury severity-that is, the greater the injury severity, the poorer the overall level of performance.…”