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Verbal IQ-performance IQ differentials in traumatic brain injury samples
Keith A Hawkins1, Kirsten Plehn, Susan Borgaro
1Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519, USA. keith.hawkins@yale.edu
Summary
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) does not consistently cause higher verbal IQ than performance IQ. Review of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised studies shows small, inconsistent VIQ-PIQ differences in TBI patients.
Area of Science:
- Neuropsychology
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neurology
Background:
- Previous studies using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) suggested verbal IQ (VIQ) is unaffected by traumatic brain injury (TBI).
- These findings led to claims of expected VIQ superiority over performance IQ (PIQ) after TBI.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) studies on head trauma.
- To investigate discrepancies in findings regarding VIQ-PIQ differences post-TBI compared to earlier WAIS studies.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review of existing literature focusing on WAIS-R studies involving TBI.
- Comparative analysis of reported VIQ and PIQ means in TBI patient samples.
Main Results:
- Contrary to earlier WAIS findings, WAIS-R studies show TBI sample PIQ means are often depressed relative to VIQ means, but differences are small.
- The direction of VIQ-PIQ differences in TBI samples is inconsistent across WAIS-R studies.
Conclusions:
- The assumption of VIQ superiority after TBI based on WAIS studies is not consistently supported by WAIS-R data.
- Clinicians should not infer the absence of TBI solely based on the lack of a VIQ-PIQ difference.