Cognitive tempo and WISC-R performance

Cognitive Tempo and Intellectual Performance in College Students

24 college students were given the adult version of Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures Test and the Advanced Progressive Matrices (1962), Set II. Neither errors nor latencies on the Matching Familiar Figures Test were significantly correlated with scores on the Advanced Progressive Matrices. These data suggest that the relationship between intellectual performance and scores on the Matching Familiar Figures Test for college students is different than that relationship for children.

Immediate Test-Retest Changes in WAIS Scores among College Males

The WAIS was administered twice, in immediate succession, in standardized fashion, to 35 undergraduate male introductory psychology students. The effects of having just immediately completed the test were reflected in the amount of change in scores from test to retest. On the average, the Verbal IQs increased by 3.1 IQ points and the Performance IQs increased by 14.2 IQ points. Full Scale IQ increased by an average of 8.3 IQ points on retest. Subtests most susceptible to gain on immediate retest were Object Assembly, Picture Arrangement, Digit Symbol, Arithmetic, and Block Design, all of which are timed. Verbal subtests were less affected by prior testing than were Performance subtests. Test-retest reliability coefficients for the Verbal IQ, Performance IQ, and Full Scale IQ were .86, .86, and .88, respectively. Subtest reliabilities ranged from a low of .61 for Object Assembly to a high of .91 for Vocabulary. Retest effects were discussed in terms of previous findings, relevant variables, and the need for further systematic research.

The Psychological Assessment of Impulsivity: A Review

A review of the clinical assessment of impulsivity with common psychological tests is presented. Although the term impulsivity is well known in the field of psychology and psychiatry, there are often misconceptions of the definition of the term and related psychometric aspects on both the empirical and clinical levels. Proposed is a definition that is in agreement with the different perspectives of the concept such that impulsivity is viewed as disordered behavior occurring with little or no premeditation or psychological capacity for delay. The assessment of impulsivity with the Bender Gestalt and Draw-A-Person tests, Wechsler scales, Rorschach, Self-Report, and Behavior Rating Scales cited in Psychological Abstracts and Dissertation Abstracts through 1984 is reviewed. It is concluded that the validity of these tests for assessing impulsivity has yet to be shown due to methodological and conceptual problems.

A structural analysis of executive functions and socioeconomic status in school-age children: cognitive factors as effect mediators

Socioeconomic status (SES) is a well-known predictor of cognitive achievement and executive functioning, although the underlying cognitive mediating processes remain unclear. The authors analyze the association between different socioeconomic indicators and the executive functions (EF) of schoolchildren and the possible cognitive mediating factors of this association. The sample included 254 children aged 7-12 years from different SES. The researchers employed a battery of tests to evaluate EF, including the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test task to measure intelligence, and the Matching Familiar Figures Test-20 to assess the reflexivity-impulsivity (R-I) cognitive style. The results indicate a significant effect of SES on all tested EF. Stepwise regression analysis showed that maternal education level and housing conditions were significant predictors of the majority of EF. Structural equation modeling showed that, although SES had effects on intelligence quotient (IQ), R-I cognitive style, and EF, the association between SES and EF is partly explained by cognitive impulsivity but not by IQ scores. Results are discussed in terms of the mediating cognitive variables that may explain the association between SES and EF and their implications for designing effective intervention programs in schools.

The Matching Familiar Figures Test: a primary, secondary, and tertiary evaluation

Analyzed the Matching Familiar Figures (MFF) Test, which has been employed by researchers to determine conceptual tempo, for potential use as a tool for the clinician. The literature indicates that the test is valid in terms of range and structural clarity of information provided. The psychological factors inherent in impulsivity are discussed, along with some significant implications of the MFF that justify its further development. Currently, the primary deficits are a lack of norms as well as an alternate form. Several crucial advantages of this test are listed that favor its use in a clinical environment.