Informal measures of processing speed and working memory and their relationship to the Wechsler intelligence scale for children-IV

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between informal measures of working memory and processing speed and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV (WISC-IV). The study consisted of twenty-three children ranging from six to twelve years old. The informal measures include two working memory tasks (Opposites Test, Mr. Cucumber) and one processing speed task (inspection time). Pearson product moment correlations between the informal measures and the WISC-IV index and Full Scale IQ scores were calculated with age partialled out of the analysis. The correlations were tested for statistical significance at .05. All of the correlations between the verbal working memory task (Opposites) and the WISC-IV index and FSIQ scores were statistically significant. The correlations between the spatial working memory task (Mr. Cucumber) and the Perceptual Reasoning Index, Working Memory Index, and the Opposites test were statistically significant. The correlations between the inspection time task and all of the WISC-IV index and FSIQ scores were not statistically significant. In addition, the test-retest reliability of the inspection time task was statistically significant (.66). These findings are discussed in terms of theories of intelligence and implications for the classroom.