Implications of large WISC/WISC-R Verbal-Performance IQ discrepancies

Forty children with Verbal-Performance IQ discrepancies on the WISC/WISC-R were studied in regard to clinical findings on psychological, educational, speech-language, and medical evaluations. Significant delays in the development of verbal when compared to performance skills were observed frequently in this referred sample. The verbal deficits were mostly developmental in nature, rather than secondary to emotional or family background factors. These children's developmental difficulties were frequently complex ones that benefitted from multidisciplinary assessment and treatment planning. It was emphasized that future research in regard to these intellectual patterns should be conducted within the confines of more neuropsychologically oriented approaches.