Utility of a clinically derived abbreviated form of the WAIS-III

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Third Edition (WAIS-III) often poses problems for many populations due to the length of administration. Twenty geriatric subjects were administered the full WAIS-III. Three abbreviated forms of the WAIS-III (Satz–Mogel abbreviation ([Satz & Mogel, 1962]); seven-subtest short form ( [Ward, 1990]); and a clinically derived abbreviation) were evaluated by rescoring original full WAIS-III protocols. Results showed that the abbreviated WAIS-III protocols were highly correlated with complete protocols, and classification rules were the highest for the clinically derived abbreviation. The clinically derived abbreviation was reevaluated in a college LD/ADHD population yielding similarly high correlations. Results support the use of abbreviated forms of the WAIS-III in the evaluation of elderly patients and young adults, and point to the clinically derived abbreviation as providing the smallest discrepancies from FSIQ.