Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 23, 2025

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients
Published on: June 12, 2020
Discrepancies in Wechsler Adult Intelligent Scale III profile in adult with and without attention-deficit
Toshinobu Takeda1, Youta Nakashima2, Yui Tsuji3,4
1Department of Clinical Psychology, Ryukoku University, Kyoto, Japan.
Aim:
The Wechsler Adult Intelligent Scale (WAIS) is the most frequently administered cognitive assessment for adult Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); therefore, identifying discrepancies in WAIS profile in patients and comparing with matched controls would be clinically and diagnostically beneficial.
Methods:
The WAIS-III profiles of 50 adults with ADHD were compared to an age-matched typical development (TD) group.
Results:
The adult ADHD group exhibited significantly lower WAIS-III working memory (WM) and processing speed (PS) indices. However, these differences disappeared when intelligence quotient (IQ), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) score, or Autism Quotient (AQ) score was included as a covariate. The adult ADHD group also demonstrated significantly lower scores in several WM- and PS-domain subscales, while crystallized abilities were comparatively preserved. Additionally, only a small portion of participants in both groups lacked any significant gaps between WAIS-III verbal and performance IQ scores (VIQ-PIQ) or associated indices.
Discussion:
This study confirms previous findings that adult ADHD patients have deficits in WM and PS. However, it is highly likely that comorbidities such as depression and autism spectrum disorder contribute to lower WM and PS scores in adult ADHD. Unexpectedly, a "flat profile" is uncommon even in TD adults. Therefore, clinician should assess how WAIS deficits affect daily life rather than merely considering an uneven WAIS profile when diagnosing and treating adult ADHD.
More Related Videos
10:02Event Related Potentials ERPs and other EEG Based Methods for Extracting Biomarkers of Brain Dysfunction: Examples from Pediatric Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD
Published on: March 12, 2020
13:09Using Brain Activation nir-HEG/Q-EEG and Execution Measures CPTs in a ADHD Assessment Protocol
Published on: April 1, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Diagnostic Criteria and Symptoms
To diagnose ADHD, symptoms must manifest before age 12 and be evident across multiple settings....
Wechsler's Contribution to Measures of Intelligence
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Diagnostic Criteria and...
Self-Discrepancy Theory
Self-Discrepancy and Its Effects