Intelligence measures as diagnostic tools for children with specific learning disabilities

Abstract

The assessment of intelligence has always been an essential part of the diagnostic process of children with specific learning disabilities (SLD). Recently, emphasis has been placed on the profile of intellectual strengths (e.g. in reasoning) and weaknesses (e.g., in working memory and processing speed). In this study, we compared the WISC-IV intellectual profile of 1383 children with SLD to the normative data for typically developing children; in particular, we analyzed the predictive power of WISC-IV indexes and their discrepancies–especially the general ability index (GAI) vs. the cognitive proficiency index (CPI) or vs. the full-scale (FSIQ)–as markers of the SLD condition. Results showed that the intellectual profile in general, and the GAI-CPI or GAI-FSIQ discrepancy in particular, represents an effective criterion for differentiating between groups. Examining the underlying cognitive profile might be useful when dealing with children who have SLD, as discrepancies could be effectively used to support a diagnosis.